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HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW 



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EVANGELINE 

A TALE OF ACADIE 



BY 

HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW 



EDITED WITH AN INTRODUCTION AND NOTES BY 
CLAUDE TOWNE BENJAMIN, M. A., INSTRUCTOR IN 
ENGLISH, DEWITT CLINTON HIGH SCHOOL; HEAD 
OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT. NEW YORK EVE- 
NING HIGH SCHOOL FOR MEN, NEW YORK CITY 




CHARLES E. MERRILL COMPANY 
NEW YORK AND CHICAGO 



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T^is series of books includes in complete editions those mas- 
terpieces of English Literature that are best adapted for the use 
of schools and colleges. The editors of the several volumes are 
chosen for their special qualifications in connection with the 
texts issued under their individual supervision, but familiarity 
with the practical needs of the classroom, no less than sound 
scholarship, characterizes the editing of every book in the series. 

In connection with each text, the editor has provided a crit- 
ical and historical introduction, including a sketch of the life 
of the author and his relation to the thought of his time, critical 
opinions of the work in question chosen from the great body of 
English criticism, and, where possible, a portrait of the author. 
Ample explanatory notes of such passages in the text as call for 
special attention are supplied, but irrelevant annotation and 
explanations of the obvious are rigidly exclilded. 

CHARLES E. MERRILL COMPANY 



Copyright, 1920 

BY 

CHARLES E. MERRILL CO. 



0)CI.A601538 

0CT'2I 1920 



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^ CONTENTS 

INTRODUCTION page 

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 5 

The Writing of Evangeline 7 

Critical Opinions 8 

The Historical Basis of the Poem 10 

Suggestions for Study 12 

Map OF the "Evangeline" Country .... 16 

EVANGELINE 17 

ANALYSIS OF EVANGELINE 113 

EXERCISES 116 

NOTES 127 



INTRODUCTION 

HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW 

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the poet, was born at Portland, 
Maine, February 27th, 1807. Like Emerson and Hawthorne, he 
was a quiet boy, fond of books, and averse to taking part in the sports 
of his schoolfellows. His nerves shrank from all loud noises. There 
is a tradition of his having begged a servant on a glorious Fourth of 
July to put cotton in his ears to deaden the roar of the cannon, 
and in later life one of his book-plates bore the motto "Non Clamor, 
sed Amor." 

At the age of fifteen this shy, studious lad was sent to Bowdoin 
College at Brunswick, Maine, after Portland Academy had taught 
him all it knew. He came prepared to make the most of his oppor- 
tunities, and after four years of hard work graduated with distinction, 
and with the promise of a professorship after a year of travel had 
broadened his mental horizon. 

The next summer found Longfellow at Paris with all Europe be- 
fore him. He wandered through England, France, Germany, Italy, 
Holland, and Spain, everywhere studying the languages, and absorb- 
ing the rich associations of foreign places. Hjs impressions of what 
he saw were in later years embodied in the prose works Outre-Mer 
and Hyperion. On his return he at once assumed the duties of his 
professorship, finding little time for literature. In 1831 he married 
an acquaintance of former years, Mary Storer Poller, with whom 
he lived most happily until her premature death in 1835. In 1834 
a pleasant surprise came in the shape of an offer of the Chair of 
Modern Languages at Harvard, an offer which Longfellow was only 
too glad to accept. The new professor's official duties were light, 
and he had leisure for the literary pursuits which had ever been his 
delight. Hyperion, a romance in two volumes and The Voices of the 

5 



6 INTRODUCTION 

Night, a volume of poems containing "The Reaper and the Flowers," 
and "The Psalm of Life," were published in 1839. Two years later 
appeared Ballads and Other Poems, containing "The Wreck of the 
Hesperus," "The Village Blacksmith," and "Excelsior"; and in the 
following year Poems on Slavery. This quiet hfe of work was inter- 
rupted in 1842 by a visit to Dickens in London, but speedily resumed. 
In July, 1843, Longfellow married his second wife, Miss Appleton, 
whose acquaintance he had made for the first time during his Swiss 
tour. 

Longfellow's ambition was to be the national poet of America. 
His poems ha4 been criticized as having no trace of Americanism. 
This criticism led to the writing of three long poems, distinctively 
American in subject and treatment. These were Evangeline, Hia^ 
watha, and The Courtship of Miles Standish. It is not to be under- 
stood that Longfellow's fame rested on these American poems alone: 
he had already written a quantity of poetry which had established 
his reputation as a poet, but it was on these that he based his claim 
to be considered the national poet of America. 

In 1854, after about eighteen years of academic work, Longfellow 
felt warranted in resigning his Harvard professorship, to be free for 
purely Hterary pursuits. His home at Cambridge was the Craigie 
House, which could boast of having once been the headquarters of 
Washington. Here, surrounded by a brilliant circle of friends, he 
lived in all the flush of a happy, successful life imtil 1861 — that 
fatal year — when his peace was invaded by a frightful calamity: 
Mrs. Longfellow, while playing with her children, set fire to her dress, 
and was mortally injured by the flames. The poet never recovered 
from the shock of this bereavement, although he continued his work 
with unabated vigor until the time of his death in March, 1882. 

After Tennyson, Longfellow has been the most popular poet of 
his day. Some critics have said that had Tennyson never written 
the Idylls, or In Memoriam, his inferiority to Longfellow would have 
been manifest, but the power displayed in these high realms of poetry 
was quite beyond Longfellow's reach. His range is domestic. He 
lacks the power of depicting deep passion, or of robing purely imag- 
inative subjects with ideal grace and color. The forces necessary 



THE WRITING OF EVANGELINE 7 

to the execution of an heroic poem are not his, but on the other hand, 
in such a description of quiet love and devoted patience as he gives 
us in Evangeline, Longfellow may be ranked with the greatest of 
poets. 

CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF THE PRINCIPAL WORKS 
OF LONGFELLOW 

Coplas de Manrique . . 1833 Flower-De-Luce . . . 1867 

Outre-Mer 1835 Divine Comedy of Dante 

Hyperion 1839 Alighieri .... 1867-70 

Voices of the Night . . 1839 New England Tragedies . 1868 

Ballads and other Poems . 1841 

Poems on Slavery . . . 1842 

Spanish Student . . . 1843 

Poets and Poetry of Europe 1845 

Belfry of Bruges . . . 1846 

Evangeline 1847 

Kavanagh 1849 

Seaside and the Fireside . 1850 

Golden Legend .... 1851 

Hiawatha 1855 

Miles Standish .... 1858 

Tales of a Wayside Inn . 1863 

THE WRITING OF EVANGELINE 

At the time when Longfellow was looking for a subject for a poem 
which should be truly American in spirit, his friend Nathaniel Haw- 
thorne dined at Craigie House, bringing with him a clergyman. In 
the course of conversation, the clergynaan repeated a story which he 
said he had been vainly trying to persuade Hawthorne to use as a 
subject for a romance. The story he told was the tale of a young 
Acadian girl who had been exiled with the other Acadians in 1755. 
In the embarkation she had been separated from her lover and after 
coming to the American colonies, wandered from place to place in 



Divine Tragedy 


1871 


Three Books of Song . 


1872 


Christus 


1872 


Aftermath .... 


1873 


Hanging of the Crane . 


1874 


Masque of Pandora 


1875 


Keramos .... 


1878 


Ultima Thule . . . 


1880 


In the Harbor [Ultims 


I 


Thule, Pt. II] . . 


1882 


Michael Angelo 


1884 



8 INTRODUCTION 

a hopeless search for him. At last, weary and old, she found him 
dying in a hospital. 

Hawthorne still insisted that he could not use the subject. Long- 
fellow, however, was interested at once. To him the story appealed 
strongly as a subject for a poem. Hawthorne and the clergyman 
gladly gave him permission to use the tale, and he set to work to col- 
lect material. 

The story in its original form was very slight. Longfellow gath- 
ered historical material from Haliburton's Nova Scotia and many 
other books. After all the facts had been collected, he again offered 
the subject to Hawthorne, but Hawthorne refused to be interested, 
and Longfellow felt free to develop the story as he chose. 

To the meagre details of the original story, Longfellow added 
the description of the little village of Grand Pre. The picture which 
he draws of the peace and beauty of the tiny village and the simple 
happiness of the people, makes the tragedy of exile and separation 
more bitter. The contrast between this quiet contentment and the 
wild forests and vast plains over which Evangeline wandered is as 
great as the contrast between her early happiness and her years of 
anxious searching. 

The description of the great rivers, forests, and prairies of the 
new continent gave Longfellow an opportunity to make the poem 
more truly American than any of his previous work. Always, how- 
ever, the descriptions are only a background for the simplicity, 
beauty, and tragedy of the love story. 

CRITICAL OPINIONS 

The sweetness, the gentleness, the grace, the purity, the humanity 
of his verse were the image of his own soul. — Charles Eliot 
Norton. 

Longfellow is the poet of the household, of the fireside, of the uni- 
versal home feeling. The infinite tenderness and patience, the pathos 
and the beauty of daily life, of familiar emotion, and the common 
scene — these are the significance of that verse whose beautiful and 
simple melody, softly murmuring for more than forty years, made 



CRITICAL OPINIONS 9 

the singer the most widely beloved of living men. — George William 
Curtis. 

In sentiment, in perception, in culture, in selection, in utterance, he 
represents, with adequate and even influential but not overwhelm- 
ing force, the tendencies and adaptabilities of the time; he is a good 
type of the "bettermost," not the exceptionally very best, minds of 
the central or later-central period of the nineteenth century; and, hav- 
ing the gift of persuasive speech and accomplished art, he can enlist 
the sympathies of readers who approach his own level of intelU- 
gence, and can dominate a numberless multitude of those who belong 
to lower planes, but who share none the less his own general concep- 
tions and aspirations. 

Evangeline, whatever may be its shortcomings and blemishes, 
takes so powerful a hold of the feelings that the fate which would 
at last merge it in oblivion could only be a very hard and even a 
perverse one. Who that has read it has forgotten it? Or in whose 
memory does it rest as other than a long-drawn sweetness and sad- 
ness that has become a portion, and a purifying portion, of the ex- 
periences of the heart? — William Michael Rossettt. 

That he could be and generally was much the reverse of common- 
place, will hardly be denied by any one who has made a real study 
of his work. ^He had a keen observation, a vivid fancy, a scholarlike 
touch, and a seemingly easy command of rhyme and rhythm, and 
it may be said as a general rule, that when Longfellow was common- 
place in sentiment he was far from commonplace in expression. His 
verse was full of grace, and, if one may use the word in this connec- 
tion, of tact. Nor, perhaps, is it fair to leave out of account that 
Longfellow began his poetic career as the poet — the poet par ex- 
cellence — of a country which had its literature to make. . . . His 
position as the spokesman in poetry of a young country had its ad- 
vantages and its drawbacks. He was more free from the disad- 
vantages of critical severity and opposition than an English writer 
could well have been; but such a freedom has its dangers, and to this 
it might not be too fanciful to trace the lapses of which some mention 
has been made. — London Saturday Review. 

Longfellow has a perfect command of that expression which results 



10 INTRODUCTION 

from restraining rather than cultivating fluency; and his manner is 
adapted to his theme. His words are often pictures of his thought. 
He selects with great delicacy and precision the exact phrase which 
best expresses or suggests his idea. He colors his style with the skill 
of a painter. His imagination, in the sphere of its activity, is al- 
most perfect in its power to shape in visible forms, or to suggest, 
by cunning verbal combinations, the feeling or thought he desires 
to express; but it lacks the strength and daring, and the wide sweep, 
which characterize the imagination of such poets as Shelley. — E. P. 
Whipple. 

Longfellow's poetry expresses the finer life of common humanity. 
No poet of English speech has so endeared himself to the general 
heart; he is the people's poet, voicing universal sentiments. Beauty, 
grace and tenderness are the marks of his power; he is never passion- 
ate, Byronic, or Browningesque. He was as sensitive to beauty as 
Keats, and his workmanship, directed by unerring taste and a deli- 
cate perception of harmonies, is uniformly excellent. The style is 
as clear as crystal, and the melody never marred by discords. There 
is none of Whittier's impetuous rush, or of Lowell's pungent humor. 
The limitations of his poetry are obvious; but so to treat the common- 
place as to make it eternally interesting and beautiful, to immortal- 
ize a "village blacksmith" in song, requires a high, if not the highest, 

order of genius. — Julian W. Abernethy. 

« 

THE HISTORICAL BASIS OF THE POEM 

In 1755 Novia Scotia — or Acadia — which for more than thirty 
years had been nominally a British province, was inhabited by some 
thousands of French colonists, who were exempt from military ser- 
vice under France, and were termed "French Neutrals." Their 
real sympathies lay with the land of their birth, not with the Govern- 
ment under whose half-contemptuous protection they lived. In 
Europe, commissioners had for some time been trying to settle a 
satisfactory boundary between New France and Nova Scotia, when 
matters were brought to a crisis by the French in America, who 
erected two forts on a neck of land at the head of the Bay of Fundy. 



THE HISTORICAL BASIS OP THE POEM 11 

Massachusetts — thi^ was before the Revolution, be it remembered — • 
sent out three thousand men to capture these forts, and the thing 
was done. In the garrisons were found three hundred of the Neutrals, 
and therefore the Acadians were held condemned as rebels against 
the English Crown. What was to be done with them? The gov- 
ernor of Novia Scotia, the Chief Justice of the province, and two Brit- 
ish admirals, met in council in July, and resolved that the entire 
population must be cleared out of that part of the country, and 
this deportation was to be' carried out in such a way as to disperse 
the captives among the English of the other provinces. Of course 
it was not easy to execute an edict like this upon a widely-scattered 
population; but stratagem prevailed with these simple people, who 
had lived peacefully for two hundred years in this land, feeding sheep 
and tilling the soil rudely. Governor Lawrence issued a proclama- 
tion ordering all the males of the colony, "both old and young men, 
as well as all lads of ten years of age," to assemble at the church of 
Grand Pre on a certain Friday, to learn His Majesty's pleasure, 
"on pain of forfeiting goods and chattels in default of real estate." 
On the Friday appointed, September 5, 1755, four hundred and eight- 
een unarmed men met within the church. The doors were closed 
upon them and guarded by soldiers; and then this mandate was 
read to the snared farmers: "It is His Majesty's orders, and they 
are peremptory, that the whole French inhabitants of these dis- 
tricts be removed. Your lands and tenements, cattle of all kinds, 
and live-stock of all sorts, are forfeited to the Crown, with all your 
other effects, saving your money and household goods; and you 
yourselves are to be removed from this province. I shall do every- 
thing in my power that your goods be secured to you, and that 
you are not molested in carrying them off; also, that whole families 
shall go in the same vessel, and that this removal be made as easy 
as His Majesty's service will admit. And I hope that, in whatever 
part of the world you may fall, y&j may be faithful subjects, a 
peaceful and happy people. Meanwhile you are the king's prisoners, 
and will remain in security under the inspection and direction of 
the troops I have the honor to command." 

Unbroken silence greeted this cruel edict, until after the lapse 



12 INTRODUCTION 

of a few minutes a moan broke from the stunned Acadians, and 
their cry of grief was echoed in bewilderment by the anxious women 
waiting with their children outside. On the 10th of September the 
inhabitants of Grand Pre — ^nineteen hundred and twenty in num- 
ber — were marched to the water's side at the point of the bayonet, 
and embarked in government ships. In spite of some show of care 
on the part of the authorities, many parents were separated from 
their families and driven into different vessels; husbands and wives 
lost each other, and maidens parted from their lovers forever. The 
vessels were not able to accommodate all the emigrants, so some of 
these remained till fresh transports carried them away from their 
homes in cheerless December; and then Acadia was left desolate, 
and the Acadians never gathered together again. Small knots of 
the wanderers settled, and have left descendants, at Clare, at 
Minudie, in parts of Prince Edward's Island, and on the north 
coast of New Brunswick. — From Robertson's Life oj Longfellow. 

SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 

In studying Evangeline for the first time, the- pupils should read 
it aloud, trying to observe the metrical accent^ yet not emphasizing 
it so much as to produce a disagreeable sing-song effect. The teacher 
will find it helpful to her class if she will write out the scansion of a 
few verses of the poem upon the blackboard, and have the class 
repeat them with her. In doing this, she should see that each 
pupil reads in a good conversational tone. The first reading of the 
poem should be done in the class. After a portion of it has been read, 
the teacher may call on some pupil to repeat the thought in his own 
words; this wiU aid in getting a good understanding and appreci- 
ation of the story. 

The second reading of the poem is to be done by the pupils them- 
selves. At this time the analysis on pages 113-115 may be studied, 
the topics and subtopics verified, and the outline completed. Now 
the pupil is prepared for a critical study of the poem and for practice 
in both written and oral composition work based upon its subject- 
matter. 



SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY 13 

The best results may be obtained by frequent practice in writing 
during a period of from fifteen to twenty minutes, allowing the pupils 
five minutes in which to review and correct their own themes. Be- 
fore the final corrections are made by the teacher, some of the essays 
may be copied upon the blackboard for revision by the class. When 
rightly conducted, this is a most valuable exercise. 

In all their writing, pupils should observe the following directions: 
(1) They should not use the same word continuously in the same 
paragraph unless a synonym for it cannot be found, or no other ex- 
pression can be put in its place. (2) They should exercise the greatest 
care in observing the rules for punctuation. Equal diligence 
should be shown in the use of capital letters. (3) In all their writing 
they should be original. They should not copy the poem, but use 
their own words and expressions. To copy the poem is to spoil both 
the poem and their own productions. 

Each pupil should have a blank-book in which to copy all of his 
corrected themes. The pages of the book should be numbered, and 
a table of contents made so that any story may be turned to readily. 
Pupils should be frequently called upon to read aloud from this book 
and from the poem, and while doing so should be required to take 
a position in front of the class. 

Equal care should be exercised in conducting the oral composition 
work. Pupils should be taught to use complete sentences, and to 
express their thoughts in a logical manner. 



EVANGELINE 
A TALE OF ACADIE 



EVANGELINE 

PRELUDE 

This is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines 

and the hemlocks, 
Bearded with moss, and in garments green, indistinct 

in the twilight. 
Stand like Druids of eld, with voices sad and pro- 
phetic. 
Stand like harpers hoar, with beards that rest on 

their bosoms. 
Loud from its rocky caverns, the deep-voiced neigh- s 

boring ocean 
Speaks, and in accents disconsolate answers the wail 

of the forest. 
This is the forest primeval; but where are the hearts 

that beneath it 
Leaped like the roe, when he hears in the woodland 

the voice of the huntsman? 
Where is the thatch-roofed village, the home of 

Acadian farmers — 
Men whose lives glided on like, rivers that water the lo 

woodlands, 
Darkened by shadows of earth, but reflecting an 

image of heaven? 
Waste are those pleasant farms, and the farmers 

forever departed ! 

17 



18 EVANGELINE 

Scattered like dust and leaves, when the mighty 

blasts of October 
Seize them, and whirl them aloft, and sprinkle them 

far o'er the ocean. 
15 Naught but tradition remains of the beautiful village 

of Grand-Pre. 

Ye who believe in affection that hopes, and endures, 

and is patient. 
Ye who believe in the beauty and strength of 

woman's devotion. 
List to the mournful tradition still sung by the pines 

of the forest; 
List to a Tale of Love in Acadie, home of the happy. 

PART THE FIRST 
I 

20 In the Acadian land, on the shores of the Basin of 
Minas, 

Distant, secluded, still, the little village of Grand- 
Pre 

Lay in the fruitful valley. Vast meadows stretched 
to the eastward. 

Giving the village its name, and pasture to flocks 
without number. 

Dikes, that the hands of the farmers had raised with 
labor incessant, 
25 Shut out the turbulent tides; but at stated seasons 
the flood-gates 



PART THE FIRST 19 

Opened, and welcomed the sea to wander at will o'er 

the meadows. 
West and south there were fields of flax, and orchards 

and corn-fields 
Spreading afar and unfenced o'er the plain; and 

away to the northward 
Blomidon rose, and the forests old, and aloft on the 

mountains 
Sea-fogs pitched their tents, and mists from the so 

mighty Atlantic 
Looked on the happy valley, but ne'er from their 

station descended. 
There, in the midst of its farms, reposed the Acadian 

village. 
Strongly built were the houses, with frames of oak 

and of chestnut. 
Such as the peasants of Normandy built in the reign 

of the Henries. 
Thatched were the roofs, with dormer-windows; and 35 

gables projecting 
Over the basement below protected and shaded the 

doorway. 
There in the tranquil evenings of summer, when 

brightly the sunset 
Lighted the village street, and gilded the vanes on 

the chimneys. 
Matrons and maidens sat in snow-white caps and in 

kirtles 
Scarlet and blue and green, with distaffs spinning 40 

the golden . 



20 EVANGELINE 

Flax for the gossiping looms, whose noisy shuttles 

within doors 
Mingled their sound with the whir of the wheels and 

the songs of the maidens. 
Solemnly down the street came the parish priest, 

and the children 
Paused in their play to kiss the hand he extended to 

bless them. 
45 Reverend walked he among them; and up rose ma- 
trons and maidens. 
Hailing his slow approach with words of affectionate 

welcome. 
Then came the laborers home from the field, and 

serenely the sun sank 
Down to his rest, and twilight prevailed. Anon from 

the belfry 
Softly the Angelus sounded, and over the roofs of the 

village 
so Columns of pale blue smoke, like clouds of incense 

ascending, 
Rose from a hundred hearths, the home of peace 

and contentment. 
Thus dwelt together in love these simple Acadian 

farmers — 
Dwelt in the love of God and of man. Alike were 

they free from 
Fear, that reigns with the tyrant, and envy, the vice 

of republics. 
55 Neither locks had they to their doors, nor bars to 

their windows; 



PART THE FIRST 21 

But their dwellings were open as day and the hearts 

of the owners; 
There the richest was poor, and the poorest lived ki 

abundance. 

Somewhat apart from the village, and nearer the 
Basin of Minas, ;, 

■-Benedict Belief ontaine, theV wealthiest farmer of 
Grand-Pre, 

Dwelt on his goodly acres; and with him, directing 6o 

his household, 
Gentle Evangeline lived, his child, and the pride of 

the village. 
Stalworth and stately in form was the man of seventy 

winters; 
Hearty and hale was he, an oak that is covered with 

snow-flakes; >^ 

White as the snow were his locks, and his cheeks as 

brown as the oak-leaves. 
Fair was she to behold, that maiden of seventeen 6S 

summers. 
Black were her eyes as the berry that grows on the 

thorn by the wayside, 
Black, yet how softly they gleamed beneath the 

brown shade of her tresses! 
Sweet was her breath as the breath of kine that feed 

in the meadows. 
When in the harvest heat she bore to the reapers at 

noontide 



22 EVANGELINE 

70 Flagons of home-brewed ale, ah ! fair in sooth was 

the maiden. 
Fairer was she when, on Sunday morn, while the bell 

from its turret 
Sprinkled with holy sounds the air, as the priest with 

his hyssop 
Sprinkles the congregation, and scatters blessings 

upon them, 
Down the long street she passed, with her chaplet of 

beads and her missal, 
75 Wearing her Norman cap, and her kirtle of blue, and 

the ear-rings, 
. Brought in the olden time from France, and since, 

as an heirloom, 
Handed down from mother to child, through long 

generations. 
But a celestial brightness — a more ethereal 

beauty — 
Shone on her face and encircled her form, when, 

after confession, 
80 Homeward serenely she walked with God's benedic- 
tion upon her. 
When she had passed, it seemed like the ceasing of 

exquisite music. 
Firmly builded with rafters of oak, the house of the 

farmer 
Stood on the side of a hill commanding the sea; and 

a shady 
Sycamore grew by the door, with a woodbine wreath- 
ing around it. 



PART THE FIRST 23 

Rudely carved was the porch, with seats beneath; ss 

and a footpath , 
Led through an orchard wide, and disappeared in the 

meadow. 
Under the sycamore-tree were hives overhung by a 

pent-house, 
Such as the traveler sees in regions remote by the 

roadside, 
Built o'er a box for the poor, or the blessed image of 

Mary. 
Farther down, on the slope of the hill, was the well 90 

with its moss-grown 
Bucket, fastened with iron, and near it a trough for 

the horses. 
Shielding the house from storms, on the north, were 

the barns and the farm-yard. 
There stood the broad-wheeled wains and the an- 
tique plows and the harrows; 
There were the folds for the sheep; and there, in his 

feathered seraglio, 
Strutted the lordly turkey, and crowed the cock, with 9S 

the selfsame 
Voice that in ages of old had startled the penitent 

Peter. 
Bursting with hay were the bams, themselves a vil- 
lage. In each one 
Far o'er the gable projected a roof of thatch; and a 

staircase. 
Under the sheltering eaves, led up to the odorous 
' corn-loft. 



24 EVANGELINE 

100 There too the dove-cot stood, with its meek and in- 
nocent inmates 

Murmuring ever of love; while above in the variant 
breezes 

Numberless noisy weathercocks rattled and sang of 
mutation. 

Thus, at peace with God and the world, the farmer 

of Grand-Pre 
Lived on his sunny farm, and Evangeline governed 

his household. 
105 Many a youth, as he knelt in the church and opened 

his missal, 
Fixed his eyes upon her as the saint of his deepest 

devotion; 
Happy was he who might touch her hand or the 

hem of her garment ! 
Many a suitor came to her door, by the darkness be- 
friended, 
And as he knocked and waited to hear the sound of 

her footsteps, 
110 Knew not which beat the louder, his heart or the 

knocker of iron; 
Or at the joyous feast of the Patron Saint of the vil- 
^ lage. 

Bolder grew, and pressed her hand in the dance as 

he whispered 
Hurried words of love, that seemed a part of the music. 
But, among all who came, young Gabriel only was 

welcome; 



PART THE FIRST 25 

Gabriel Lajeunesse, the son of Basil the black- iis 

smith, 
Who was a mighty man in the village, and honoured 

of all men; 
For, since the birth of time, throughout all ages and 

nations. 
Has the craft of the smith been held in repute by the 

people. 
Basil was Benedict's friend. Their children from 

earliest childhood 
Grew up together as brother and sister, and Father 120 

Felician, 
Priest and pedagogue both in the village, had taught 

them their letters 
Out of the selfsame book, with the hymns of the 

church and the plain-song. 
But when the hymn was sung, and the daily lesson 

completed, 
Swiftly they hurried away to the forge of Basil the 

blacksmith. 
There at the door they stood, with wondering eyes 12s 

to behold him 
Take in his leathern lap the hoof of the horse as a 

plaything. 
Nailing the shoe in its place; while near him the 

tire of the cart-wheel 
Lay like a fiery snake, coiled round in a circle of cin- 
ders. 
Oft on autumnal eves, when without in the gather- 
ing darkness 



26 EVANGELINE 

130 Bursting with light seemed the smithy, through 

every cranny and crevice, 
Warm by the forge within they watched the laboring 

bellows. 
And as its panting ceased, and the sparks expired in 

the ashes. 
Merrily laughed, and said they were nuns going 

into the chapel. 
Oft on sledges in winter, as swift as the swoop of the 

eagle, 
135 Down the hill-side bounding, they glided away o'er 

the meadow. 
Oft in the barns they climbed to the populous nests 

on the rafters. 
Seeking with eager eyes that wondrous stone, which 

the swallow 
Brings from the shore of the sea to restore the sight 

of its fledglings. 
Lucky was he who found that stone in the nest of the 

swallow ! 
140 Thus passed a few swift years, and they no longer 

were children. 
He was a valiant youth, and his face, like the face 

of the morning, 
Gladdened the earth with its light and ripened 

thought into action. 
She was a woman now, with the heart and hopes of 

a woman. 
"Sunshine of Saint Eulalie" was she called; for 

that was the sunshine 



PART THE FIRST 27 

Which, as the farmers believed, would load their us 

orchards with apples; 
She, too, would bring to her husband's house de- 

light and abundance, 
Filling it full of love and the ruddy faces of children. 

II 

Now had the season returned, when the nights grow 

colder and longer. 
And the retreating sun the sign of the Scorpion en- 
ters. 
Birds of passage sailed through the leaden air, from iso 

the ice-bound. 
Desolate northern bays to the shores of tropical 

islands. 
Harvests were gathered in; and wild with the winds 

of September 
Wrestled the trees of the forests, as Jacob of 'old 

with the angel. 
All the signs foretold a winter long and inclement. 
Bees, with prophetic instinct of want, had hoarded i5S 

their honey 
Till the hives overflowed; and the Indian hunters 

asserted 
Cold would the winter be, for thick was the fur of the 

foxes. 
Such was the advent of autumn. Then followed that 

beautiful season, 
Called by the pious Acadian peasants the Summer 

of All-Saints! 



28 EVANGELINE 

160 Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light; 

and the landscape 
Lay as if new created in all the freshness of childhood. 
Peace seemed to reign upon earth, and the restless 

heart of the ocean 
Was for a moment consoled. All sounds were in 

harmony blended. 
Voices of children at play, the crowing of cocks in 

the farmyards, 
165 Whir of wings in the drowsy air, and the cooing of 

pigeons. 
All were subdued and low as the murmurs of love, 

and the great sun 
Looked with the eye of love through the golden va- 
pors around him; 
While arrayed in its robes of russet and scarlet and 

yellow. 
Bright with the sheen of the dew, each glittering 

tree of the forest 
170 Flashed like the plane-trees the Persian adorned with 

mantles and jewels. 

Now recommenced the reign of rest and affection and 

stillness. 
Day with its burden and heat had departed, and 

twilight descending 
Brought back the evening star to the sky, and the 

herds to the homestead. 
Pawing the ground they came, and resting their 

necks on each other, 



PART THE FIRST 29 

And with their nostrils distended inhaHng the fresh- i7s 

ness of evening. 
Foremost, bearing the bell, Evangeline^s beautiful 

heifer, 
Proud of her snow-white hide, and the ribbon that 

waved from her collar, 
Quietly paced and slow, as if conscious of human 

affection. 
Then came the shepherd back with his bleating 

flocks from the seaside, 
Where was their favorite pasture. Behind them fol- iso 

lowed the watch-dog. 
Patient, full of importance, and grand in the pride 

of his instinct, 
Walking from side to side with a lordly air, and 

superbly 
Waving his bushy tail, and urging forward the strag- 
glers; 
Regent of flocks was he when the shepherd slept; 

their protector. 
When from the forest at night, through the starry iss 

silence, the wolves howled. 
Late, with the rising moon, returned the wains 

from the marshes. 
Laden with briny hay, that fiUed the air with its 

odor. 
Cheerily neighed the steeds, with dew on their manes 

and their fetlocks. 
While aloft on their shoulders the wooden and pon- 
derous saddles, 



30 EVANGELINE 

190 Painted with brilliant dyes, and adorned with tassels 
of crimson, 

Nodded in bright array, like hollyhocks heavy with 
blossoms. 

Patiently stood the cows meanwhile, and yielded 
their udders 

Unto the milkmaid's hand; whilst loud and in regu- 
lar cadence 

Into the sounding pails the foaming streamlets de- 
scended. 
195 Lowing of cattle and peals of laughter were heard in 
the farmyard, 

Echoed back by the barns. Anon they sank into 
stillness; 

Heavily closed, with a jarring sound, the valves of 
the barn doors, 

Rattled the wooden bars, and all for a season was 
silent. 

Indoors, warm by the wide-mouthed fireplace, idly 
the farmer , 

200 Sat in his elbow-chair; and watched how the flames 
and the smoke-wreaths 

Struggled together like foes in a burning city. Be- 
hind him, 

Nodding and mocking along the wall, with gestures 
fantastic, 

Darted his own huge shadow, and vanished away 
into darkness. 

Faces, clumsily carved in oak, on the back of his 
arm chair. 



PART THE FIRST 31 

Laughed in the flickering Ught, and the pewter plates 20s 

on the dresser 
Caught and reflected the flame, as shields of armies 

the sunshine. 
Fragments of song the old man sang, and carols of 

Christmas, 
Such as at home, in the olden time, his fathers before 

him 
Sang in their Norman orchards and bright Burgun- 

dian vineyards. 
Close at her father's side was the gentle Evangeline 210 

seated. 
Spinning flax for the loom, that stood in the comer 

behind her. 
Silent awhile were its treadles, at rest was its diligent 

shuttle. 
While the monotonous drone of the wheel, like the 

drone of a bagpipe. 
Followed the old man's song, and united the frag- 
ments together. 
As in a church, when the chant of the choir at inter- 215 

vals ceases. 
Footfalls are heard in the aisles, or words of the 

priest at the altar. 
So, in each pause of the song, with measured motion 

the clock clicked. 

Thus as they sat, there were footsteps heard, and, 

suddenly lifted. 
Sounded the wooden latch, and the door swung back 

on its hinges. 



32 EVANGELINE 

220 Benedict knew by the hob-nailed shoes it was Basil 

the blacksmith, 
And by her beating heart Evangeline knew who was 

with him. 
" Welcome ! " the farmer exclaimed, as their footsteps 

paused on the threshold, 
"Welcome, Basil, my friend! Come, take thy place 

on the settle 
Close by the chimney-side, which is always empty 

without thee; 
225 Take from the shelf overhead thy pipe and the box 

of tobacco ; 
Never so much thyself art thou as when through the 

curling 
Smoke of the pipe or the forge thy friendly and jovial 

face gleams 
Round and red as the harvest moon through the mist 

of the marshes." 
Then, with a smile of content, thus answered Basil 

the blacksmith, a 

230 Taking with easy air the accustomed seat by the fire- 
side: — 
'^Benedict Belief ontaine, thou hast ever thy jest and 

thy ballad ! 
Ever in cheerfulest mood art thou, when others are 

filled with 
Gloomy forebodings of ill, and see only ruin before 

them. 
Happy art thou, as if every day thou hadst picked 

up a horseshoe." 



PART THE FIRST 33 

Pausing a moment, to take the pipe that Evangeline 235 

brought him, 
And with a coal from the embers had lighted, he 

slowly continued : — 
"Four days now are passed since the English ships 

at their anchors 
Ride in the Gaspereau's mouth, with their cannon 

pointed against us. 
What their design may be is unknown; but all are 

commanded 
On the morrow to meet in the church, where his 240 

Majesty's mandate 
Will be proclaimed as law in the land. Alas! in the 

mean time 
Many surmises of evil alarm the hearts of the 

people." 
Then made answer the farmer: — ''Perhaps some 

friendly purpose 
Brings these ships to our shores. Perhaps the har- 
vests in England 
By the untimely rains or untimelier heat have been 245 

blighted, 
And from our bursting barns they would feed their 

cattle and children." 
''Not so thinketh the folk in the village," said, 

warmly, the blacksmith. 
Shaking his head, as in doubt; then, heaving a sigh, 

he continued : — 
"Louisburg is not forgotten, nor Beau Sejour, nor 

Port Royal. 



34 EVANGELINE 

250 Many already have fled to the forest, and lurk on 

its outskirts, 
Waiting with anxious hearts the dubious fate of to- 
morrow. 
Arms have been taken from us, and warlike weapons 

of all kinds; 
Nothing is left but the blacksmith's sledge and the 

scythe of the mower." 
Then with a pleasant smile made answer the jovial 

farmer: — 
255 "Safer are we unarmed, in the midst of our flocks 

and our cornfields. 
Safer within these peaceful dikes, besieged by the 

ocean. 
Than were our fathers in forts, besieged by the 

enemy's cannon. 
Fear no evil, my friend, and to-night may no shadow 

of sorrow 
Fall on this house and hearth; for this is the night 

of the contract. 
260 Built are the house and the barn. The merry lads 

of the village 
Strongly have built them and well; and, breaking 

the glebe round about them, 
Filled the barn with hay, and the house with food 

for a twelvemonth. 
Rene Leblanc will be here anon, with his papers and 

inkhorn. 
Shall we not then be glad, and rejoice in the joy of 

our children? " 



PART THE FIRST 35 

As apart by the window she stood, with her hand 265 
in her lover's, 

Blushing Evangeline heard the words that her father 
had spoken, 

And as they died on his lips the worthy notary en- 
tered. 

Ill 

Bent like a laboring oar, that toils in the surf of the 
ocean. 

Bent, but not broken, by age was the form of the 
notary public; 

Shocks of yellow hair, like the silken floss of the 270 
maize, hung 

Over his shoulders; his forehead was high; and 
glasses with horn bows 

Sat astride on his nose, with a look of wisdom super- 
nal. 

Father of twenty children was he, and more than a 
hundred 

Children's children rode on his knee, and heard his 
great watch tick. 

Four long years in the times of the war had he Ian- 275 
guished a captive. 

Suffering much in an old French fort as the friend 
of the English. 

Now, though warier grown, without all guile or sus- 
picion, 

Ripe in wisdom was he, but patient, and simple and 
childlike. 



36 EVANGELINE 

He was beloved by all, and most of all by the chil- 
dren; 
280 For he told them tales of the Loup-garou in the 
forest, 

And of the goblin that came in the night to water the 
horses. 

And of the white Letiche, the ghost of a child who 
unchristened 

Died, and was doomed to haunt unseen the chambers 
of children; 

And how on Christmas eve the oxen talked in the 
stable, 
285 And how the fever was cured by a spider shut up in 
a nutshell. 

And of the marvelous powers of four-leaved clover 
and horseshoes, 

With whatsoever else was writ in the lore of the vil- 
lage. 

Then up rose from his seat by the fireside Basil the 
blacksmith. 

Knocked from his pipe the ashes, and slowly extend- 
ing his right hand, 
290 ''Father Leblanc," he exclaimed, "thou hast heard 
the talk in the village. 

And, perchance, canst tell us some news of these 
ships and their errand." 

Then with modest demeanor made answer the notary 
public, — 

"Gossip enough have I heard, in sooth, yet am never 
the wiser; 



PART THE FIRST 37 

And what their errand may be I know not better 

than others. 
Yet am I not of those who imagine some evil inten- 295 

tion 
Brings them here, for we are at peace; and why- 
then molest us? '' 
"God's name!" shouted the hasty and somewhat 

irascible blacksmith; 
"Must we in all things look for the how, and the 

why, and the wherefore? 
Daily injustice is done, and might is the right of the 

strongest!" 
But, without heeding his warmth, continued the 300 

notary public, — 
"Man is unjust, but God is just; and finally justice 
Triumphs; and well I remember a story, that often 

consoled me, 
When as a captive I lay in the old French fort at Port 

Royal." 
This was the old man's favorite tale, and he loved to 

repeat it 
When his neighbors complained that any injustice 30s 

was done them. 
"Once in an ancient city, whose name I no longer 

remember, 
Raised aloft on a column, a brazen statue of Justice 
Stood in the public square, upholding the scales in 

its left hand. 
And in its right a sword, as an emblem that justice 

presided 



38 EVANGELINE 

310 Over the laws of the land, and the hearts and homes 
of the people. 

Even the birds had built their nests in the scales of 
the balance, 

Having no fear of the sword that flashed in the sun- 
shine above them. 

But in the course of time the laws of the land were 
corrupted; 

Might took the place of right, and the weak were 
oppressed, and the mighty 
315 Ruled with an iron rod. Then it chanced in a noble- 
man's palace 

That a necklace of pearls was lost, and ere long a 
suspicion 

Fell on an orphan girl who lived as maid in the 
household. 

She, after form of trial condemned to die on the 
scaffold. 

Patiently met her doom at the foot of the statue of 
Justice. 
320 As to her Father in heaven her innocent spirit as- 
cended, 

Lo! o'er the city a tempest rose; and the bolts of 
the thunder 

Smote the statute of bronze, and hurled in wrath 
from its left hand 

Down on the pavement below the clattering scales of 
the balance, 

And in the hollow thereof was found the nest of a 
magpie, 



PART THE FIRST 39 

Into whose clay-built walls the necklace of pearls was 32s " 

inwoven." 
Silenced, but not convinced, when the story was 

ended, the blacksmith 
Stood like a man who fain would speak, but findeth 

no language; 
All his thoughts were congealed into lines on his 

face, as the vapors 
Freeze in fantastic shapes on the window-panes in 

the winter. 
Then Evangeline lighted the brazen lamp on the 330 

table. 
Filled, till it overflowed, the pewter tankard with 

home-brewed 
Nut-brown ale, that was famed for its strength in 

the village of Grand-Pre; 
While from his pocket the notary drew his papers 

and inkhorn. 
Wrote with a steady hand the date and the age of 

the parties. 
Naming the dower of the bride in flocks of sheep and 335 

in cattle. 
Orderly all things proceeded, and duly aild well were 

completed, 
And the great seal of the law was set like a sun on 

the margin. 
Then from his leathern pouch the farmer threw on 

the table 
Three times the old man's fee in solid pieces of 

silver; 



40 EVANGELINE 

340 And the notary rising, and blessing the bride and 
the bridegroom, 

Lifted aloft the tankard of ale and drank to their 
welfare. 

Wiping the foam from his lip, he solemnly bowed 
and departed, 

While in silence the others sat and mused by the fire- 
side. 

Till Evangeline brought the draught-board out of its 
corner. 
345 Soon was the game begun. In friendly contention 
the old men 

Laughed at each lucky hit, or unsuccessful ma- 
noeuver. 

Laughed when a man was crowned, or a breach was 
made in the king-row. 

Meanwhile apart, iii the twilight gloom of a win- 
dow's embrasure. 

Sat the lovers and whispered together, beholding 
the moon rise 
350 Over the pallid sea and the silvery mist of the 
meadows. 

Silently one by one, in the infinite meadows of heaven. 

Blossomed the lovely stars, the forget-me-nots of the 
angels. 

Thus was the evening passed. Anon the bell from 

the belfry 
Rang out the hour of nine, the village curfew, and 

straightway 



PART THE FIRST 41 

Rose the guests and departed; and silence reigned in 355 

the household. 
Many a farewell word and sweet good-night on the 

door-step 
Lingered long in Evangeline's heart, and filled it with 

gladness. 
Carefully then were covered the embers that glowed 

on the hearth-stone, 
And on the oaken stairs resounded the tread of the 

farmer. 
Soon with a soundless step the foot of Evangeline 36o 

followed. 
Up the staircase moved a luminous space in the dark- 
ness, 
Lighted less by the lamp than the shining face of the 

maiden. 
Silent she passed through the hall, and entered the 

door of her chamber. 
Simple that chamber was, with its curtains of white, 

and its clothes-press 
Ample and high, on whose spacious shelves were 36s 

carefully folded 
Linen and woolen stuffs, by the hand of Evangeline 

woven. 
This was the precious dower she would bring to her 

husband in marriage, 
Better than flocks and herds, being proofs of her skill 

as a housewife. 
Soon she extinguished her lamp, for the mellow and 

radiant moonlight 



■^'S^ 



42 EVANGELINE 

370 Streamed through the windows, and lighted the 

room, till the heart of the maiden 
Swelled and obeyed its power, like the tremulous 

tides of the ocean. 
Ah! she was fair, exceeding fair to behold, as she 

stood with 
Naked snow-white feet on the gleaming floor of her 

chamber! 
Little she dreamed that below, among the trees of 

the orchard, 
375 Waited her lover and watched for the gleam of her 

lamp and her shadow. 
Yet were her thoughts of him, and at times a feeling 

of sadness 
Passed o'er her soul, as the sailing shade of clouds in 

the moonlight 
Flitted across the floor and darkened the room for a 

moment. 
And, as she gazed from the window, she saw serenely 

the moon pass 
380 Forth from the folds of a cloud, and one star follow 

her footsteps. 
As out of Abraham's tent young Ishmael wandered 

with Hagar. 

IV 

Pleasantly rose next morn the sun on the village of 

Grand-Pre. 
Pleasantly gleamed in the soft, sweet air the Basin 

of Minas, 



PART THE FIRST 43 

Where the ships, with their wavering shadows, were 

riding at anchor. 
Life had long been astir in the village, and clamor- sss 

ous labor 
Knocked with its hundred hands at the golden gates 

of the morning. 
Now from the country around, from the farms and 

the neighboring hamlets, 
Came in their holiday dresses the blithe Acadian 

peasants. 
Many a glad good-morrow and jocund laugh from 

the young folk 
Made the bright air brighter, as up from the numer- 390 

ous meadows. 
Where no path could be seen but the track of wheels 

in the greensward. 
Group after group appeared, and joined, or passed 

on the highway. 
Long ere noon, in the village all sounds of labor were 

silenced. 
Thronged were the streets with people; and noisy 

groups at the house-doors 
Sat in the cheerful sun, and rejoiced and gossiped 395 

together. 
Every house was an inn, where all were welcomed 

and feasted; 
For with this simple people, who lived like brothers 

together, 
All things were held in common, and what one had 

was another's. 



44 EVANGELINE 

Yet under Benedict's roof hospitality seemed more 

abundant : 
400 For Evangeline stood among the guests of her father; 
Bright was her face with smiles, and words of wel- 
come and gladness 
Fell from her beautiful lips, and blessed the cup as 

she gave it. 
Under the open sky, in the odorous air of the orchard, 
Stript of its golden fruit, was spread the feast of 

betrothal. 
405 There in the shade of the porch were the priest and 

the notary seated ; 
There good Benedict sat, and sturdy Basil the black- 
smith. 
Not far withdrawn from these, by the cider-press 

and the beehives, 
Michael the fiddler was placed, with the gayest of 

hearts and of waistcoats. 
Shadow and light from the leaves alternately played 

on his snow-white 
410 Hair, as it waved in the wind; and the jolly face of 

the fiddler 
Glowed like a living coal when the ashes are blown 

from the embers. 
Gayly the old man sang to the vibrant sound of his 

fiddle, 
Tous les Bourgeois de Chartres, and Le Carillon de 

Dunkerque, 
And anon with his wooden shoes beat time to the 

music. 



PART THE FIRST 45 

Merrily, merrily whirled the wheels of the dizzying 4is 

dances 
Under the orchard-trees and down the path to the 

meadows; 
Old folk and young together, and children mingled 

among them. 
Fairest of all the maids was Evangeline, Benedict's 

daughter! 
Noblest of all the youths was Gabriel, son of the 

blacksmith! 

So passed the morning away. And lo! with a sum- 420 
mons sonorous 

Sounded the bell from its tower, and over the mead- 
ows a drum beat. 

Thronged ere long was the church with men. With- 
out, in the churchyard, 

Waited the women. They stood by the graves, and 
hung on the headstones 

Garlands of autumn leaves and evergreens fresh from 
the forest. 

Then came the guard from the ships, and marching 42s 
proudly among them 

Entered the sacred portal. With loud and dissonant 
clangor 

Echoed the sound of their brazen drums from ceil- 
ing and casement, — 

Echoed a moment only, and slowly the ponderous 
portal 



46 EVANGELINE 

Closed, and in silence the crowd awaited the will of 

the soldiers. 
430 Then uprose their commander, and spake from the 

steps of the altar, 
Holding aloft in his hands, with its seals, the royal 

commission. 
"You are convened this day," he said, "by his 

Majesty's orders. 
Clement and kind has he been; but how you have 

answered his kindness 
Let your own hearts reply! To my natural make 
"■*""" and my temper 
435 Painful the task is I do, which to you I know must 

be grievous. 
Yet must I bow and obey, and deliver the will of our 

monarch : 
Namely, that all your lands, and dwellings, and 

cattle of all kinds 
Forfeited be to the crown; and that you yourselves 

from this province 
Be transported to other lands. God grant you may 

dwell there 
440 Ever as faithful subjects, a happy and peaceable 

people! 
Prisoners now I declare you, for such is his Majesty's 

pleasure!" 
ls, when the air is serene in the sultry solstice of 

summer. 
Suddenly gathers a storm, and the deadly sling of 

the hailstones 



PART THE FIRST 47 

Beats down the farmer's corn in the field, and shat- 
ters his windows, 
Hiding the sun, and strewing the ground with thatch as 

from the house-roofs, 
Bellowing fly the herds, and seek to break their in- 

closures; 
So on the hearts of the people descended the words 

of the speaker. 
Silent a moment they stood in speechless wonder, 

and then rose 
Louder and ever louder a wail of sorrow and anger, 
And, by one impulse moved, they madly rushed to 4so 

the door-way. 
Vain was the hope of escape; and cries » and fierce 

imprecations 
Rang through the house of prayer; and high o'er the 

heads of the others 
Rose, with his arms uplifted, the figure of Basil the 

blacksmith. 
As, on a stormy sea, a spar is tossed by the billows. ' 
Flushed was his face and distorted with passion ; and 4S5 

wildly he shouted, — 
''Down with the tyrants of England! we never have 

sworn them allegiance! 
Death to these foreign soldiers, who seize on our 

homes and our harvests!" 
More he fain would have said, but the merciless hand 

of a soldier 
Smote him upon the mouth, and dragged him down 

to the pavement. 



48 EVANGELINE 

460 In the midst of the strife and tumult of angry conten- 
tion, 

Lo! the door of the chancel opened, and Father Fe- 
lician 

Entered, with serious mien, and ascended the steps 
of the altar. 

Raising his reverend hand, with a gesture he awed 
into silence 

All that clamorous throng; and thus he spake to his 
people; 
465 Deep were his tones and solemn; in accents measured 
and mournful 

Spake he, as, after the tocsin's alarum, distinctly the 
clock strikes. 

"What is this that ye do, my children? what mad- 
ness has seized you? 

Forty years of my life have I labored among you, 
and taught you, 

Not in word alone, but in deed, to love one an- 
other! 
470 Is this the fruit of my toils, of my vigils and prayers 
and privations? 

Have you so soon forgotten all lessons of love and 
forgiveness? 

This is the house of the Prince of Peace, and would 
you profane it 

Thus with violent deeds and hearts overflowing with 
hatred? 

Lo! where the crucified Christ from His cross is 
gazing upon you! 



PART THE FIRST 49 

See ! in those sorrowful eyes what meekness and holy 475 

compassion ! 
Hark! how those lips still repeat the prayer, 'O 

Father, forgive them ! ' 
Let us repeat that prayer in the hour when the 

wicked assail us, 
Let us repeat it now, and say, 'O Father, forgive 

them!"' 
Few were his words of rebuke, but deep in the hearts 

of his people 
Sank they, and sobs of contrition succeeded that 480 

passionate outbreak. 
While they repeated his prayer, and said,''0 Father, 

forgive them!" 

Then came the evening service. The tapers gleamed 

from the altar. 
Fervent and deep was the voice of the priest, and the 

people responded. 
Not with their lips alone, but their hearts; and the 

Ave Maria 
Sang they, and fell on their knees, and their souls, 48S 

with devotion translated, 
Rose on the ardor of prayer, like Elijah ascending to 

heaven. 

Meanwhile had spread in the village the tidings of 

ill, and on all sides 
Wandered, wailing, from house to house the women 

and children. 



50 EVANGELINE 

Long at her father's door Evangeline stood, with her 
right hand 
490 Shielding her eyes from the level rays of the sun, 
that, descending, 

Lighted the village street with mysterious splendor, 
and roofed each 

Peasant's cottage with golden thatch, and emblaz- 
oned its windows. 

Long within had been spread the snow-white cloth 
oil the table; 

There stood the wheaten loaf, and the honey fra- 
grant with wild-flowers; 
495 There stood the tankard of ale, and the cheese fresh 
brought from the dairy; 

And at the head of the board the great armchair of 
the farmer. 

Thus did Evangeline wait at her father's door, as the 
sunset 

Threw the long shadows of trees o'er the broad am- 
brosial meadows. ' 

Ah! on her spirit within a deeper shadow had 
fallen, 
500 And from the fields of her soul a fragrance celestial 
ascended — 

Charity, meekness, love, and hope, and forgiveness, 
and patience! 

Then, all-forgetful of self, she wandered into the vil- 
lage. 

Cheering with looks and words the disconsolate 
hearts of the women, 



PART THE FIRST 51 

As o'er the darkening fields with lingering steps they 
departed, 

Urged by their household cares, and the weary feet sos 
of their children. 

Down sank the great red sun, and in golden, glim- 
mering vapors 

Veiled the light of his face, like the Prophet descend- 
ing from Sinai. 

Sweetly over the village the bell of the Angelus 
sounded. 

Meanwhile, amid the gloom, by the church Evange- 
line lingered. 
All was silent within; and in vain at the door and sio 

the windows 
Stood she, and listened and looked, till, overcome by 

emotion, 
"Gabriel!" cried she aloud with tremulous voice; 

but no answer 
Came from the graves of the dead, nor the gloomier 

grave of the living. 
Slowly at length she returned to the tenantless house 

of her father. 
Smouldered the fire on the hearth, on the board sis 

stood the supper untasted, 
Empty and drear was each room, and haunted with 

phantoms of terror. 
Sadly echoed her step on the stair and the floor of 

her chamber. 



62 EVANGELINE 

In the dead of the night she heard the whispering 

rain fall 
Loud on the withered leaves of the sycamore-tree by 

the window. 
520 Keenly the lightning flashed ; and the voice of the 

echoing thunder 
Told her that God was in heaven, and governed the 

world he created ! 
Then she remembered the tale she had heard of the 

justice of Heaven; 
Soothed was her troubled soul, and she peacefully 

slumbered till morning. 

Four times the sun had risen and set; and now on 

the fifth day 
525 Cheerily called the cock to the sleepiAg maids of the 

farmhouse. 
Soon o'er the yellow fields, in silent and mournful 

procession, 
Came from the neighbouring hamlets and farms the 

Acadian women, 
Driving in ponderous wains their household goods to 

the seashore, 
Pausing and looking back to gaze once more on their 

dwellings, 
530 Ere they were shut from sight by the winding road 

and the woodland. 



PART THE FIRST 53 

Close at their sides their children ran, and urged on 
the oxen, 

While in their little hands they clasped soriie- frag- 
ments of playthings. 

Thus to the Gaspereau's mouth they hurried; and 

there on the sea-beach 
Piled in confusion lay the household goods of the 

peasants. 
All day long between the shore and the ships did the szs 

boats ply; 
All day long the wains came laboring down from the 

village. 
Late in the afternoon, when the sun was near to his 

setting. 
Echoing far o'er the fields came the roll of drums 

from the churchyard. 
Thither the women and children thronged. On a 

sudden the church-doors 
Opened, and forth came the guard, and marching in 540 

gloomy procession 
Followed the long-imprisoned, but patient, Acadian 

farmers. 
Even as pilgrims, who journey afar from their homes 

and their country. 
Sing as they go, and in singing forget they are weary 

and wayworn, 
So with songs on their lips the Acadian peasants de- 
scended 



54 EVANGELINE 

545 Down from the church to the shore, amid their wives 
and their daughters. 
Foremost the young men came; and, raising to- 
gether their voices. 
Sang with tremulous lips a chant of the Catholic 

Missions : — 
'* Sacred heart of the Saviour! inexhaustible 

, fountain! 
Fill our hearts this day with strength and submission 
and patience!" 
550 Then the old men, as they marched, and the women 
that stood by the wayside 
Joined in the sacred psalm, and the birds in the sun- 
shine above them 
Mingled their notes therewith, like voices of spirits 
departed. 

Half-way down to the shore Evangeline waited in 
silence, 

Not overcome with grief, but strong in the hour of 
affliction, — 
555 Calmly and sadly she waited, until the procession 
approached her, 

And she beheld the face of Gabriel pale with emotion. 

Tears then filled her eyes, and, eagerly running to 
meet him, 

Clasped she his hands, and laid her head on his 
shoulder and whispered — 

"Gabriel! be of good cheer! for if we love one an- 
other, 



PART THE FIRST 55 

Nothing, in truth, can harm us, whatever mischances seo 

may happen!" 
Smiling she spake these words; then suddenly " 

paused, for her father 
Saw she slowly advancing. Alas! how changed was 

his aspect! 
Gone was the glow from his cheek, and the fire from^ 

his eye, and his footstep 
Heavier seemed with the weight of the heavy heart 

in his bosom. 
But with a smile and a sigh she clasped his neck and 565 

embraced him, 
Speaking words of endearment where words of com- 
fort availed not. 
Thus to the Gaspereau's mouth moved on that 

mournful procession. 



y y 



There disorder prevailed, and the tumult and stir of 
embarking. 

Busily plied the freighted boats; and in the confu- 
sion 

Wives were torn from their husbands, and mothers, 570 
too late, saw their children 

Left on the land, extending their arms, with wildest 
entreaties. 

So unto separate ships were Basil and Gabriel carried, 

While in despair on the shore Evangeline stood with 
her father. 

Half the task was not done when the sun went down, 
and the twilight 



56 EVANGELINE 

575 Deepened and darkened around; and in haste the 

refluent ocean 
Fled away from the shore, and left the line of the 

sand-beach 
Covered with waifs of the tide, with kelp and the 

slippery seaweed. 
Farther back in the midst of the household goods and 

the wagons. 
Like to a gypsy camp, or a leaguer after a 

battle, 
580 All escape cut off by the sea, and the sentinels near 

them, 
Lay encamped for the night the houseless Acadian 

farmers. 
Back to its nethermost caves retreated the bellowing 

ocean, 
Dragging adown the beach the rattling pebbles, and 

leaving 
Inland and far up the shore the stranded boats of 

the sailors. 
585 Then, as the night descended, the herds returned 

from their pastures; 
Sweet was the moist still air with the odor of milk 

from their udders; 
Lowing they waited, and long, at the well-known 

bars of the farmyard, — 
Waited and looked in vain for the voice and the hand 

of the milkmaid. 
Silence reigned in the streets; from the church no 

Angelus sounded, 



PART THE FIRST 57 

Rose no smoke from the roofs, and gleamed no lights 590 

from the windows. 
But on the shores meanwhile the evening fires had 

been kindled, 
Built of the driftwood thrown on the sands from. 

wrecks in the tempest. 
Round them shapes of gloom and sorrowful faces 

were gathered. 
Voices of women were heard, and of men, and the 

crying of children. 
Onward from fire. to fire, as from hearth to hearth in 59s 

his parish, 
Wandered the faithful priest, consoling and blessing 

and cheering. 
Like unto shipwrecked Paul on Melita's desolate 

seashore. 
Thus he approached the place where Evangeline sat 

with her father, 
And in the flickering light beheld the face of the old 

man, 
Haggard and hollow and wan and without either 600 

thought or emotion. 
E'en as the face of a clock from which the hands have 

been taken. 
Vainly Evangeline strove with words and caresses to 

cheer him. 
Vainly offered him food; yet he moved not, he 

looked not, he spake not. 
But, with a vacant stare, ever gazed at the flickering 

firelight. 



68 EVANGELINE 

605 '^Benedicite!^^ murmured the priest, in tones of 

compassion. 
More he fain would have said, but his heart was full, 

and his accents 
Faltered and paused on his lips, as the feet of a child 

on a threshold. 
Hushed by the scene he beholds, and the awful pres- 
ence of sorrow. 
Silently, therefore, he laid his hand on the head of 

the maiden, 
^^^ Raising his eyes, full of tears, to the silent stars that 

above them 
Moved on their way, unperturbed by the wrongs and 

sorrows of mortals. 
Then sat he down at her side, and they wept together 

in silence. 

Suddenly rose from the south a light, as in autumn 
the blood-red 

Moon climbs the crystal walls of heaven, and o'er 
the horizon 
615 Titan-like stretches its hundred hands upon moun- 
tain and meadow. 

Seizing the rocks and the rivers, and piling huge 
shadows together. 

Broader and ever broader it gleamed on the roofs of 
the village. 

Gleamed on the sky and the sea, and the ships that 
lay in the roadstead. 



PART THE FIRST 59 

Columns of shining smoke uprose, and flashes of 
flame were 

Thrust through their folds and withdrawn, like the 620 
quivering hands of a martyr. 

Then as the wind seized the gleeds and the burning 
thatch, and, uplifting, 

Whirled them aloft through the air, at once from a 
hundred housetops 

Started the sheeted smoke with flashes of flame in- 
termingled. 

These things beheld in dismay the crowd on the 

shore and on shipboard. 
Speechless at first they stood, then cried aloud in 62s 

their anguish, 
*'We shall behold no more our homes in the village 

ofGrand-Pre!" 
Loud on a sudden the cocks began to crow in the 

farmyards. 
Thinking the day had dawned; and anon the lowing 

of cattle 
Came on the evening breeze, by the barking of dogs 

interrupted. 
Then rose a sound of dread, such as startles the 63o 

sleeping encampments 
Far in the western prairies or forests that skirt the 

Nebraska, 
When the wild horses affrighted sweep by with the 

speed of the whirlwind, 



60 , EVANGELINE 

Or the loud bellowing herds of buffaloes rush to the 

river. 
Such was the sound that arose on the night, as the 

herds and the horses 
635 Broke through their folds and fences, and madly 

rushed o'er the meadows. 
Overwhelmed with the sight, yet speechless, the 

priest and the maiden 
Gazed on the scene of terror that reddened and 

widened before them; 
And as they turned at length to speak to their silent 

companion, 
Lo! from his seat he had fallen, and stretched abroad 

on the seashore 
640 Motionless lay his form, from which the soul had 

departed. 
Slowly the priest uplifted the lifeless head, and the 

maiden 
Knelt at her father's side, and wailed aloud in her 

terror. 
Then in a swoon she sank, and lay with her head on 

his bosom. 
Through the long night she lay in deep, oblivious 

slumber; 
645 And when she awoke from the trance, she beheld a 

multitude near her. 
Faces of friends she beheld, that were mournfully 

gazing upon her. 
Pallid, with tearful eyes, and looks of saddest com- 
passion. 



PART THE FIRST 61 

Still the blaze of the burning village illumined the 

landscape, 
Reddened the sky overhead, and gleamed on the 

faces around her, 
And like the day of doom it seemed to her wavering 65o 

senses. 
Then a familiar voice she heard, as it said to the 

people^— 
"Let us bury him here by the sea. When a happier 

season 
Brings us again to our homes from the unknown 

land of our exile. 
Then shall his sacred dust be piously laid in the 

churchyard." 
Such were the words of the priest. And there in 6ss 

haste by the seaside. 
Having the glare of the burning village for funeral 

torches. 
But without bell or book, they buried the farmer of 

Grand-Pre. 
And as the voice of the priest repeated the service of 

sorrow, 
Lo! with a mournful sound, like the voice of a vast 

congregation. 
Solemnly answered the sea, and mingled its roar with 66o 

the dirges. 
'Twas the returning tide, that afar from the waste of 

the ocean, 
With the first dawn of the day, came heaving and 

hurrying landward. 



62 EVANGELINE 

Then recommenced once more the stir and noise of 

embarking; 
And with the ebb of that tide the ships sailed out of 

the harbor, 
665 Leaving behind them the dead on the shore, and the 

village in ruins. 

PART THE SECOND 

I 

Many a weary year had passed since the burning of 

Grand-Pre, 
When on the falling tide the freighted vessels de- 
parted, 
Bearing a nation, with all its household gods, into 

exile. 
Exile without an end, and without an example in 

story. 
670 Far asunder, on separate coasts, the Acadians 

landed; 
Scattered were they, like flakes of snow when the 

wind from the northeast 
Strikes aslant through the fogs that darken the 

Banks of Newfoundland. 
Friendless, homeless, hopeless, they wandered from 

city to city, 
From the cold lakes of the North to sultry Southern 

savannas— 
67S From the bleak shores of the sea to the lands where 

the Father of Waters 



PART THE SECOND 63 

Seizes the hills in his hands, and drags them down to 
the ocean, 

Deep in their sands to bury the scattered bones of the 
mammoth. 

Friends they sought and homes; and many, de- 
spairing, heartbroken, 

Asked of the earth but a grave, and no longer a 
friend nor a fireside. 

Written their history stands on tablets of stone in 680 
the churchyards. 

Long among them was seen a maiden who waited 
and wandered, 

Lowly and meek in spirit, and patiently suffering all 
things. 

Fair was she and young; but, alas! before her ex- 
tended. 

Dreary and vast and silent, the desert of life, with 
its pathway 

Marked by the graves of those who had sorrowed 685 
and suffered before her. 

Passions long extinguished, and hopes dead and 
abandoned, 

As the emigrant's way o'er the Western desert is 
marked by 

Camp-fires long consumed, and bones that bleach in 
the sunshine. 

Something there was in her life incomplete, imper- 
fect, unfinished; 

As if a morning of June, with all its music and sun- 69c 
shine, 



64 EVANGELINE 

Suddenly paused in the sky, and, fading, slowly de- 
scended 

Into the east again, from whence it late had 
arisen. 

Sometimes she lingered in towns, till, urged by the 
fever within her, 

Urged by a restless longing, the hunger and thirst of 
the spirit, 
695 She would commence again her endless search and 
endeavor; 

Sometimes in churchyards strayed, and gazed on the 
crosses arid tombstones. 

Sat by some nameless grave, and thought that per- 
haps in its bosom 

He was already at rest, and she longed to slumber 
beside him. 

Sometimes a rumor, a hearsay, an inarticulate whis- 
per, 
700 Came with its airy hand to point and beckon her for- 
ward. 

Sometimes she spake with those who had seen her 
beloved and known him. 

But it was long ago, in some far-off place or for- 
gotten. 

"Gabriel Lajeunesse!" they said; "O, yes! we have 
seen him. 

He was with Basil the blacksmith, and both have 
gone to the prairies; 
705 Coureurs-des-Bois are they, and famous hunters and 
trappers.'' 



PART THE SECOND 65 

'^Gabriel Lajeunesse!" said others; '^O, yes! we 

have seen him. 
He is a Voyageur in the lowlands of Louisiana." 
Then would they say: ''Dear child! why dream and 

wait for him longer? 
Are there not other youths as fair as Gabriel? others 
Who have hearts as tender and. true, and spirits as 7io 

loyal? 
Here is Baptiste Leblanc, the notary's son, who has 

loved thee 
Many a tedious year; come, give him thy hand and 

be happy! 
Thou art too fair to be left to braid St. Catherine's 

tresses." 
Then would Evangeline answer, serenely but sadly — 

"I cannot! 
Whither my heart has gone, there follows my hand, ns 

and not elsewhere. 
For when the heart goes before, like a lamp, and 

illumines the pathway. 
Many things are made clear, that else lie hidden in 

darkness." 
And thereupon the priest, her friend and father-con- 
fessor, 
Said, with a smile, ''O daughter! thy God thus 

speaketh within thee! 
Talk not of wasted affection, affection never was 720 

wasted ; 
If it enrich not the heart of another, its waters, re- 
turning 



66 EVANGELINE 

Back to their springs, like the rain, shall fill them 
full of refreshment; 

That which the fountain sends forth returns again to 
the fountain. 

Patience; accomplish thy labor; accomplish thy work 
of affection ! 
725 Sorrow and silence are strong, and patient endurance 
is godlike. 

Therefore accomplish thy labor of love, till the heart 
4s made godlike. 

Purified, strengthened, perfected, and rendered more 
worthy of heaven! " 

Cheered by the good man's words, Evangeline la- 
bored and waited. 

Still in her heart she heard the funeral dirge of the 
ocean, 
730 But with its sound there was mingled a voice that 
whispered, ''Despair not!" 

Thus did that poor soul wander in want and cheer- 
less discomfort. 

Bleeding, barefooted, over the shards and thorns of 
existence. 

Let me essay, O Muse ! to follow the wanderer's foot- 
steps; 

Not through each devious path, each changeful year 
of existence; 
735 But as a traveler follows a streamlet's course through 
the valley; 

Far from its margin at times, and seeing the gleam 
of its water 



PART THE SECOND 67 

Here and there, in some open space, and at intervals 

only: 
Then drawing nearer its banks, through sylvan 

glooms that conceal it. 
Though he behold it not, he can hear its continuous 

murmur; 
Happy, at length, if he find the spot where it reaches 740 

an outlet. 

II. 

It was the month of May. Far down the Beautiful 
River, 

Past the Ohio shore and past the mouth of the 
Wabash, 

Into the golden stream of the broad and swift Mis- 
sissippi, 

Floated a cumbrous boat, that was rowed by Acadian 
boatmen. 

It was a band of exiles; a raft, as it were, from the 745 
shipwrecked 

Nation, scattered along the coast, now floating to- 
gether. 

Bound by the bonds of a common belief and a com- 
mon misfortune; 

Men and women and children, who, guided by hope 
or by hearsay. 

Sought for their kith and their kin among the few- 
acred farmers 

On the Acadian coast, and the prairies of fair Ope- 7so 
lousas. 



68 EVANGELINE 

With them Evangeline went, and her guide, the 

Father Felician. 
Onward, o'er sunken sands, through a wilderness 

somber with forests. 
Day after day they glided adown the turbulent 

river; 
Night after night, by their blazing fires, encamped on 

its borders, 
755 Now through rushing chutes, among green islands, 

where plumelike 
Cotton-trees nodded their shadowy crests, they 

swept with the current, 
Then emerged into broad lagoons, where silvery sand 

bars 
Lay in the stream, and along the wimpling waves of 

their margin. 
Shining with snow-white plumes, large flocks of peli- 
cans waded. 
760 Level the landscape grew, and along the shores of 

the river. 
Shaded by china-trees, in the midst of luxuriant 

gardens. 
Stood the houses of planters, with negro-cabins and 

dove-cotes. 
They were approaching the region where reigns per- 
petual summer. 
Where through the Golden Coast, and groves of 

orange and citron, 
765 Sweeps with majestic curve the river away to the 

eastward. 



PART THE SECOND 69 

They, too, swerved from their course; and, entering 

the Bayou of Plaquemine, 
Soon were lost in a maze of sluggish and devious 

waters, 
Which, like a network of steel, extended in every 

direction. 
Over their heads the towering and tenebrous boughs 

of the cypress 
Met in a dusky arch, and trailing mosses in mid- 770 

air 
Waved like banners that hang on the walls of an- 
cient cathedrals. 
Death like the silence seemed, and unbroken, save by 

the herons 
Home to their roosts in the cedar-trees returning at 

sunset. 
Or by the owl, as he greeted the moon with demoniac 

laughter. 
Lovely the moonlight was as it glanced and gleamed 775 

on the water, 
Gleamed on the columns of cypress and cedar sus- 
taining the arches, 
Down through whose broken vaults it fell as through 

chinks in a ruin. 
Dreamlike, and indistict, and strange were all things 

around them; 
And o'er their spirits there came a feeling of wonder 

and sadness — 
Strange forebodings of ill, unseen and that cannot be 78o 

compassed. 



70 EVANGELINE 

As, at the tramp of a horse's hoof on the turf of the 

prairies, 
Far in advance are closed the leaves of the shrinking 

mimosa, 
So, at the hoof-beats of fate, with sad forebodings of 

evil, 
Shrinks and closes the heart, ere the stroke of doom 

has attained it. 
785 But Evangeline's heart was sustained by a vision, 

that faintly 
Floated before her eyes, and beckoned her on through 

the moonlight. 
It was the thought of her brain that assumed the 

shape of a phantom. 
Through those shadowy aisles had Gabriel wandered 

before her. 
And every stroke of the oar now brought him nearer 

and nearer. 
790 Then in his place, at the prow of the boat, rose one 

of the oarsman. 
And, as a signal sound, if others like them per- 

adventure 
Sailed on those gloomy and midnight streams, blew a 

blast on his bugle. 
Wild through the dark colonnades and corridors 

leafy the blast rang. 
Breaking the seal of silence, and giving tongues to 

the forest. 
795 Soundless above them the banners of moss just 

stirred to the music. 



PART THE SECOND 71 

Multitudinous echoes awoke and died in the distance, 

Over the watery floor, and beneath the reverberant 
branches; 

But not a voice replied; no answer came from the 
darkness; 

And when the echoes had ceased, like a sense of pain 
was the silence. 

Then . Evangeline slept; but the boatmen rowed soo 
through the midnight, 

Silent at times, then singing familiar Canadian boat- 
songs, 

Such as they sang of old on their own Acadian rivers. 

And through the night were heard the mysterious 
sounds of the desert, 

Far off, indistinct, as of wave or wind in the forest, 

Mixed with the whoop of the crane and the roar of sos 
the grim alligator. 

Thus ere another noon they emerged from the 
shades; and before them 

Lay, in the golden sun, the lakes of the Atchafalaya. 

Water-lilies in myriads rocked on the slight undula- 
tions 

Made by the passing oars, and, resplendent in beauty 
the lotus 

Lifted her golden crown above the heads of the boat- 8iq 
men. 

Faint was the air with the odorous breath of mag- 
nolia blossoms. 

And with the heat of noon; and. numberles^s sylvan 
islandsj 



72 EVANGELINE 

Fragrant and thickly embowered with blossoming 

hedges of roses, 
Near to whose shores they glided along, invited to 

slumber. 
815 Soon by the fairest of these their weary oars were 

suspended. 
Under the boughs of Wachita willows, that grew by 
jk the margin, 

Safely their boat was moored; and scattered Joout 

on the greensward, 
Tired with their midnight toil, the weary travelers 

slumbered. 
Over them vast and high extended the cope of a 

cedar. 
820 Swinging from its great arms, the trumpet-flower 

and the grape-vine 
Hung their ladder of ropes aloft like the ladder of 

Jacob, 
On whose pendulous stairs the angels ascending, de- 
scending. 
Were the swift humming-birds, that flitted from 

blossom to blossom. 
Such was the vision Evangeline saw as she slumbered 

beneath it. 
825 Filled was her heart with love, and the dawn of an 

opening heaven 
Lighted her soul in sleep with the glory of regions 

celestial. 
Nearer and ever nearer, among the numberless 

islands, 



PART THE SECOND 73 

Darted a light, swift boat, that sped away o'er the 

water. 
Urged on its course by the sinewy arms of hunters 

and trappers. 
Northward its prow was turned, to the land of the 830 

bison and beaver. 
At the helm sat a youth, with countenance thought- 
ful and careworn. 
Dark and neglected locks overshadowed his brow, 

and a sadness 
Somewhat beyond his years on his face was legibly 

written. 
Gabriel was it, who, weary with waiting, unhappy 

and restless. 
Sought in the Western wilds oblivion of self and of 835 

sorrow. 
Swiftly they glided along, close under the lee of the 

island. 
But by the opposite bank, and behind a screen of 

palmettos. 
So that they saw not the boat, where it lay concealed 

in the willows, 
All undisturbed by the dash of their oars, and un- 
seen, were the sleepers; 
Angel of God was there none to awaken the slumber- 840 

ing maiden. 
Swiftly they glided away, like the shade of a cloud 

on the prairie. 
After the sound of their oars on the tholes had died 

in the distance, «, 



74 EVANGELINE 

As from a magic trance the sleepers awoke, and the 

maiden 
Said with a sigh to the friendly priest — "0 Father 

Felician! 
845 Something says in my heart that near me Gabriel 

wanders. 
Is it a foolish dream, an idle and vague supersti- 
tion? 
Or has an angel passed, and revealed the truth to my 

spirit? '^ 
Then, with a blush, she added — ''Alas for my credu- 
lous fancy! 
Unto ears like thine such words as these have no 

meaning. " 
850 But made answer the reverend man, and he smiled 

as he answered, — 
"Daughter, thy words are not idle; nor are they to 

me without meaning. 
Feeling is deep and still; and the word that floats 

on the surface 
Is as the tossing buoy, that betrays where the anchor 

is hidden. 
Therefore trust to thy heart, and to what the world 

calls illusions. 
855 Gabriel truly is near thee; for not far away to the 

southward, 
On the banks of the Teche are the towns of St. Maur 

and St. Martin. 
There the long-wandering bride shall be given again 

to her bridegroom, 



PART THE SECOND 75 

There the long-absent pastor regain his flock and his ^ 
sheepfold. / 

Beautiful is the land, with its prairies and forests of 
fruit-trees; 

Under the feet a garden of flowers, and the bluest of 860 ! 
heavens 

Bending above, and resting its dome on the walls of 

the forest. f 

They who dwell there have named it the Eden of 
Louisiana." 

And with these words of cheer they arose and con- 
tinued their journey. 

Softly the evening came. The sun from the western 
horizon 

Like a magician extended his golden wand o'er the 865 
landscape; 

Twinkling vapors arose; and sky and water and 
forest 

Seemed all on fire at the touch, and melted and 
mingled together. 

Hanging between two skies, a cloud with edges of 
silver, 

Floated the boat, with its dripping oars, on the mo- 
tionless water. 

Filled was Evangeline's heart with inexpressible 87o 
sweetness. 

Touched by the magic spell, the sacred fountains of 
feeling 

Glowed with the light of love, as the skies and waters 
around her. 



76 EVANGELINE 

Then from a neighboring thicket the mocking-bird, 

wildest of singers, 
Swinging aloft on a willow spray that hung o'er the 

water, 
875 Shook from his little throat floods of delirious 

music. 
That the whole air and the woods and the waves 

seemed silent to listen. 
Plaintive at first were the tones and sad; then soar- 
ing to madness 
Seemed they to follow or guide the revel of frenzied 

Bacchantes. 
Single notes were then heard, in sorrowful, low 

lamentation; 
880 Till, having gathered them all, he flung them abroad 

in derision. 
As when, after a storm, a gust of wind through the 

tree-tops 
Shakes down the rattling rain in a crystal shower on 

the branches. 
With such a prelude as this, and hearts that throbbed 

with emotion. 
Slowly they entered the Teche, where it flows 

through the green Opelousas, 
885 And through the amber air, above the crest of the 

woodland, 
Saw the column of smoke that arose from a neighbor- 
ing dwelling; 
Sounds of a horn they heard, and the distant lowing 

of cattle. 



PART THE SECOND 77 

III 

• 

Near to the bank of the river, o'ershadowed by oaks 

from whose branches 
Garlands of Spanish moss and of mystic mistletoe 

flaunted, 
Such as the Druids cut down with golden hatchets at sqo 

Yule-tide, 
Stood, secluded and still, the house of the herdsman. 

A garden 
Girded it round with a belt of luxuriant blos- 
soms, 
Filling the air with fragrance. The house itself was 

of timbers 
Hewn from the cypress-tree, and carefully fitted to- 
gether. 
Large and low was the roof; and on slender columns 895 

supported, 
Rose-wreathed, vine-encircled, a broad and spacious 

veranda. 
Haunt of the humming-bird, and the bee, extended 

around it. 
At each end of the house, amid the flowers of the 

garden. 
Stationed the dove-cotes were, as love's perpetual 

symbol. 
Scenes of endless wooing, and endless contentions of 90o 

rivals. 
Silence reigned o'er the place. The line of shadow 

and sunshine 



78 EVANGELINE 

Ran near the tops of the trees; but the house itself 
^ was in shadow, 

And from its chimney-top, ascending and slowly ex- 
panding 

Into the evening air, a thin blue column of smoke rose. 
905 In the rear of the house, from the garden gate, ran a 
pathway 

Through the great groves of oak to the skirts of the 
limitless prairie. 

Into whose sea of flowers the sun was slowly descend- 
ing. 

Full in his track of light, like ships with shadowy 
canvas 

Hanging loose from their spars in a motionless calm 
in the tropics, 
910 Stood a cluster of trees, with a tangled cordage of 
grape-vines. 

Just where the woodlands met the flowery surf of the 

prairie, 
Mounted upon his horse, with Spanish saddle and 

stirrups. 
Sat a herdsman, arrayed in gaiters and doublet of 

deerskin. 
Broad and brown was the face that from under the 

Spanish sombrero 
915 Gazed on the peaceful scene, with the lordly look of 

its master. 
Round about him were numberless herds of kine, 

that were grazing 



PART THE SECOND 79 

Quietly in the meadows, and breathing the vapory 

freshness 
That uprose from the river, and spread itself over 

the landscape. 
Slowly lifting the horn that hung at his side, and 

expanding 
Fully his broad, deep chest, he blew a blast, that 920 

resounded 
Wildly and sweet and far, through the still damp air 

of the evening. 
Suddenly out of the grass the long white horns of the 

cattle 
Rose like flakes of foam on the adverse currents of 

ocean. 
Silent a moment they gazed, then bellowing rushed 

o'er the prairie, 
And the whole mass became a cloud, a shade in the 92s 

distance. 
Then, as the herdsman turned to the house, through 

the gate of the garden 
Saw he the forms of the priest and the maiden ad- 
vancing to meet him. 
Suddenly down from his horse he sprang in amaze- 
ment, and forward 
Rushed with extended arms and exclamations of 

wonder; 
When they beheld his face, they recognized Basil the 930 

Blacksmith. 
Hearty his welcome was, as he led his guests to the 

garden. 



80 EVANGELINE 

There in an arbor of roses with endless question and 

answer 
Gave they vent to their hearts, and renewed their 

friendly embraces, 
Laughing and weeping by turns, or sitting silent and 

thoughtful. 
935 Thoughtful, for Gabriel came not, and now dark 

doubts and misgivings 
Stole o'er the maiden's heart; and Basil, somewhat 

embarrassed. 
Broke the silence and said — ''If you come by the 

Atchafalaya, 
How have you nowhere encountered my Gabriel's 

boat on the bayous? " 
Over Evangeline's face at the words of Basil a shade 

passed. 
940 Tears came into her eyes, and she said, with a trem- 
ulous accent — 
"Gone? is Gabriel gone?" and, concealing her face 

on his shoulder. 
All her o'erburdened heart gave way, and she wept 

and lamented. 
Then the good Basil said — and his voice grew blithe 

as he said it — 
"Be of good cheer, my child; it is only to-day he 

departed. 
94S Foolish boy! he has left me alone with my herds and 

my horses. 
Moody and restless grown, and tried and troubled, 

his spirit 



PART THE SECOND 81 

Could no longer endure the calm of this quiet existence. 
Thinking ever of thee, uncertain and sorrowful ever, 
Ever silent, or speaking only of thee and his troubles, 
He at length had become so tedious to men and to 9so 

maidens, 
Tedious even to me, that at length I bethought me 

and sent him 
Unto the town of Adayes to trade for mules with 

the Spaniards. 
Thence he will follow the Indian trails to the Ozark 

Mountains, 
Hunting for furs in the forests, on rivers trapping 

the beaver. 
Therefore be of good cheer; we will follow the fugi- 95s 

tive lover; 
He is not far on his way, and the Fates and the 

streams are against him. 
Up and away to-morrow, and through the red dew 

of the morning 
We will follow him fast and bring him back to his 

prison." 

Then glad voices were heard, and up from the banks 

of the river, 
Borne aloft on his comrades' arms, came Michael the 960 

fiddler. 
Long under Basil's roof had he lived like a god on 

Olympus, 
Having no other care than dispensing music to 

mortals, 



82 EVANGELINE 

Far renowned was he for his silver locks and his 

fiddle. 
"Long live Michael," they cried, "our brave Aca- 
dian minstrel ! " 
965 As they bore him aloft in triumphal procession; and 

straightway 
Father Felician advanced with Evangeline, greeting 

the old man 
Kindly and oft, and recalling the past, while Basil, 

enraptured, 
Hailed with hilarious joy his old companions and 

gossips, 
Laughing loud and long, and embracing mothers and 

daughters. 
970 Much they marvelled to see the wealth of the ci- 
devant blacksmith, 
All his domains and his herds, and his patriarchal 

demeanor; 
Much they marveled to hear his tales of the soil and 

the climate, 
And of the prairies, whose numberless herds were his 

who would take them; 
Each one thought in his heart that he, too, would 

go and do likewise. 
975 Thus they ascended the steps, and, crossing the 

breezy veranda, 
Entered the hall of the house, where already the 

supper of Basil 
Waited his late return; and they rested and feasted 

together. 



PART THE SECOND 83 

Over the joyous feast the sudden darkness de- 
scended. 

All was silent without, and, illuming the landscape 
with silver, 

Fair rose the dewy moon and the myriad stars; but 98o 
within doors, 

Brighter than these, shone the faces of friends in the 
glimmering lamplight. 

Then from his station aloft, at the head of the table, 
the herdsman 

Poured forth his heart and his wine together in end- 
less profusion. 

Lighting his pipe, that was filled with sweet Natchi- 
toches tobacco. 

Thus he spake to his guests, who listened, and smiled 985 
as they listened : 

"Welcome once more, my friends, who long have 
been friendless and homeless. 

Welcome once more to a home, that is better per- 
chance than the old one! N 

Here no hungry winter congeals our blood like the 
rivers; 

Here no stony ground provokes the wrath of the 
farmer. 

Smoothly the plowshare runs through the soil as a 990 
keel through the water. 

All the year round the orange-groves are in blossom; 
and grass grows 

More in a single night than a whole Canadian sum- 
mer. 



84 EVANGELINE 

Here, too, numberless herd run wild and unclaimed 
in the prairies; 

Here, too, land may be had for the asking, and for- 
ests of timber 
995 With a few blows of the axe are hewn and framed 
into houses. 

After your houses are built, and your fields are yel- 
low with harvests. 

No King George of England shall drive you away 
from your homesteads, 

Burning your dwellings and barns, and stealing your 
farms and your cattle." 

Speaking these words, he blew a wrathful cloud from 
his nostrils, 
1000 While hi^ huge, brown hand came thundering down 
on the table. 

So that the guests all started; and Father Felician, 
astounded, 

Suddenly paused, with a pinch of snuff half-way to 
his nostrils. 

But the brave Basil resumed, and his words were 
milder and gayer : — 

"Only beware of the fever, my friends, beware of the 
fever! 
1005 For it is not like that of our cold Acadian 
climate. 

Cured by wearing a spider hung round one's neck in 
a nutshell!" 

Then there were voices heard at the door, and foot- 
steps approaching 



PART THE SECOND 85 

Sounded upon the stairs and the floor of the breezy 

veranda. 
It was the neighboring Creoles and small Acadian 

planters, 
Who had been summoned all to the house of Basil loio 

the Herdsman. 
Merry the meeting was of ancient comrades and 

neighbors; 
Friend clasped friend in his arms; and they who 

before were as strangers, 
Meeting in exile, became straightway as friends to 

each other, 
Drawn by the gentle bond of a common country to- 
gether. 
But in the neighboring hall a strain of music, pro- lois 

ceeding 
From the accordant strings of Michael's melodious 

fiddle. 
Broke up all further speech. Away, like children de- 
lighted, 
All things forgotten beside, they gave themselves to 

the maddening 
Whirl of the dizzy dance, as it swept and swayed to 

the music, 
Dreamlike, with beaming eyes and the rush of flut- 1020 

tering garments. 

Meanwhile, apart, at the head of the hall, the priest 

and the herdsman 
Sat, conversing together of past and present and 

future; 



86 EVANGELINE 

While Evangeline stood like one entranced, for with- 
in her 

Olden memories rose, and loud in the midst of the 
music 
1025 Heard she the sound of the sea, and an irrepressible 
sadness 

Came o'er her heart, and unseen she stole forth into 
the garden 

Beautiful was the night. Behind the black wall of 
the forest, 

Tipping its summit with silver, arose the moon. On 
the river 

Fell here and there through the branches a tremulous 
gleam of the moonlight, 
1030 Like the sweet thoughts of love on a darkened and 
devious spirit. 

Nearer and round about her, the manifold flowers of 
the garden 

Poured out their souls in odors, that were their 
prayers and confessions 

Unto the night, as it went its way, like a silent Car- 
thusian. 

Fuller of fragrance than they, and as heavy with 
shadows and night-dews, 
1035 Hung the heart of the maiden. The calm and the 
magical moonlight 

Seemed to inundate her soul with indefinable long- 
ings. 

As, through the garden gate, beneath the brown 
shade of the oak-trees, 



PART THE SECOND 87 

Passed she along the path to the edge of the measur- 

less prairie. 
Silent it lay, with a silvery haze upon it, and the 

fire-flies 
Gleaming and floating away in mingled and infinite 1040 

numbers. 
Over her head the stars, the thoughts of God in the 

heavens. 
Shone on the eyes of man, who had ceased to marvel 

and worship. 
Save when a blazing comet was seen on the walls of 

that temple, 
As if a hand had appeared and written upon them, 

^'Upharsin." 
And the soul of the maiden, between the stars and 1045 

the fire-flies, 
Wandered alone, and she cried — ^'O Gabriel! O my 

beloved ! 
Art thou so near unto me, and yet I cannot behold 

thee? 
Art thou so near unto me, and yet thy voice does 

not reach me? 
Ah! how often thy feet have trod this path to the 

prairie! 
Ah! how often thine eyes have looked on the wood- 1050 

lands around me! 
Ah! how often beneath this oak, returning from 

labor, 
Thou hast lain down to rest, and to dream of me in 

thy slumbers* 



88 EVANGELINE 

When shall these eyes behold, these arms be folded 

about thee?" 
Loud and sudden and near the note of a whippoor- 

will sounded 
loss Like a flute in the woods; and anon, through the 

neighboring thickets, 
Farther and farther away it floated and dropped into 

silence. 
"Patience!" whispered the oaks from oracular 

caverns of darkness; 
And, from the moonlit meadow, a sigh responded, 

"To-morrow!" 

Bright rose the sun next day; and all the flowers of 

the garden 
1060 Bathed his shining feet with their tears, and anointed 

his tresses 
With the delicious balm that they bore in their vases 

of crystal. 
"Farewell!" said the priest, as he stood at the 

shadowy threshold ; 
"See, that you bring us the Prodigal Son from his 

fasting and famine. 
And, too, the Foolish Virgin, who slept when the 

bridegroom was coming." 
1065 "Farewell!" answered the maiden, and, smiling, with 

Basil descended 
Down to the river's brink, where the boatmen al- 
ready were waiting. 



PART THE SECOND 89 

Thus beginning their journey with morning, and sun- 
shine and gladness, 
Swiftly they followed the flight of him who was 

speeding before them, 
Blown by the blast of fate like a dead leaf over the 

desert. 
Not that day, nor the next, nor yet that day that io7o 

succeeded, 
Found they trace of his course, in lake or forest or 

river. 
Nor, after many days, had they found him; but 

vague and uncertain 
Rumors alone were their guides through a wild and 

desolate country, 
Till, at the little inn of the Spanish town of 

Adayes, 
Weary and worn, they alighted, and learned from 1075 

the garrulous landlord. 
That on the day before, with horses and guides and 

companions. 
Gabriel left the village, and took the road of the 

prairies. 

Far in the West there lies a desert land, where the 
mountains 

Lift, through perpetual snows, their lofty and lumi- 
nous summits. 

Down from their jagged deep ravines, where the loso 
gorge, like a gateway, 



90 EVANGELINE 

Opens a passage rude to the wheels of the emigrant's 

wagon, 
Westward the Oregon flows and the Walleway and 

Owyhee. 
Eastward, with devious course, among the Wind- 
river Mountains, 
Through the Sweetwater Valley precipitate leaps the 

Nebraska; 
1085 And to the south, from Fontaine-qui-bout and the 

Spanish sierras. 
Fretted with sands and rocks, and swept by the wind 

of the desert, 
Numberless torrents, with ceaseless sound, descend 

to the ocean. 
Like the great chords of a harp, in loud and solemn 

vibrations. 
Spreading between these streams are the wondrous, 

beautiful prairies, 
1090 Billowy bays of grass ever rolling in shadow and sun- 
shine, 
Bright wth luxuriant clusters of roses and purple 

amorphas. 
Over them wander the buffalo herds, and the elk and 

the roebuck; 
Over them wander the wolves, and herds of riderless 

horses; 
Fires that blast and blight and winds that are weary 

with travel; 
1095 Over them wander the scattered tribes of Ishmael's 

children, 



PART THE SECOND 91 

Staining the desert with blood ; and above their ter- 
rible war-trails 

Circles and sails aloft, on pinions majestic, the vul- 
ture, 

Like the implacable soul of a chieftain slaughtered in 
battle, 

By invisible stairs ascending and scaling the heavens. 

Here and there rise smokes from the camps of these noo 
savage marauders; 

Here and there rise groves from the margins of swift- 
running rivers; 

And the grim, taciturn bear, the anchorite monk of 
the desert, 

Climbs down their dark ravines to dig for roots by 
the brookside, 

And over all is the sky, the clear and crystalline 
heaven, 

Like the protecting hand of God inverted above iios 
them. 

Into this wonderful land, at the base of the Ozark 

Mountains, 
Gabriel far had entered, with hunters and trappers 

behind him. 
Day after day, with their Indian guides, the maiden 

and Basil 
Followed his flying steps, and thought each day to 

o'ertake him. 
Sometimes they saw, or thought they saw, the smoke iiio 

of his camp-fire 



92 EVANGELINE 

Rise in the morning air from the distant plain; but 
at nightfall, 

When they had reached the place, they found only 
embers and ashes. 

And, though their hearts were sad at times and their 
bodies were weary, 

Hope still guided them on, as the Magic Fata Mor- 
gana 
1115 Showed them her lakes of light, that retreated and 
^vanished before them. 

Once, as they sat by their evening fire, there silently 

entered 
Into the little camp an Indian woman, whose features 
Wore deep traces of sorrow, and patience as great as 

her sorrow. 
She was a Shawnee woman returning home to her 

people, 
1120 From the far-off hunting-grounds of the cruel Co- 

manches. 
Where her Canadian husband, a Coureur-des-Bois, 

had been murdered. 
Touched were their hearts at her story, and warmest 

and friendliest welcome 
Gave they, with words of cheer, and she sat and 

feasted among them 
On the buffalo meat and the venison cooked on the 

embers. 
1125 But when their meal was done, and Basil and all his 

companions, 



PART THE SECOND 93 

Worn with the long day's march and the chase of the 

deer and the bison, 
Stretched themselves on the ground, and slept where 

the quivering firelight 
Flashed on their swarthy cheeks, and their forms 

wrapped up in their blankets, 
Then at the door of Evangeline's tent she sat and re- 
peated 
Slowly, with soft, low voice, and the charm of her ii3o 

Indian accent. 
All the tale of her love, with its pleasures, and pains, 

and reverses. 
Much Evangeline wept at the tale, and to know that 

another 
Hapless heart like her own had loved and had been 

disappointed. 
Moved to the depths of her soul by pity and woman's 

compassion. 
Yet in her sorrow pleased that one who had suffered lus 

was near her, 
She in turn related her love and all its disas- 
ters. 
Mute with wonder the Shawnee sat, and when she 

had ended 
Still was mute; but at length, as if a mysterious 

horror 
Passed through her brain, she spake, and repeated 

the tale of the Mowis; 
Mowis, the bridegroom of snow, who won and wed- iho 

ded a maiden, 



94 EVANGELINE 

But, when the morning came, arose and passed from 

the wigwam. 
Fading and melting away and dissolving into the 

sunshine, 
Till she beheld him no more, though she followed far 

into the forest. 
Then, in those sweet, low tones, that seemed like a 

weird incanation, 
1145 Told she the tale of the fair Lilinau, who was wooed 

by a phantom. 
That, through the pines o'er her father's lodge, in 

the hush of the twilight. 
Breathed like the evening wind, and whispered love 

to the maiden. 
Till she followed his green and waving plume through 

the forest. 
And never more returned, nor was seen again by her 

people. 
1150 Silent with wonder and strange surprise, Evangeline 

listened 
To the soft flow of her magical words, till the region 

around her 
Seemed like enchanted ground, and her swarthy 

guest the enchantress. 
Slowly over the tops of the Ozark Mountains the 

moon rose. 
Lighting the little tent, and with a mysterious splen- 
dor 
1155 Touching the somber leaves, and embracing and fill- 
ing the woodland. 



PART THE SECOND 95 

With a delicious sound the brook rushed by, and the 

branches 
Swayed and sighed overhead in scarcely audible 

whispers. 
Filled with the thoughts of love was Evangeline's 

heart, but a secret. 
Subtile sense crept in of pain and indefinite terror, 
As the cold, poisonous snake creeps into the nest of neo 

the swallow. 
It was no earthly fear. A breath from the region of 

spirits 
Seemed to float in the air of night; and she felt for a 

moment 
That, like the Indian maid, she, too, was pursuing a 

phantom. 
And with this thought she slept, and the fear and 

the phantom had vanished. 

Early upon the morrow the march was resumed; and ii65 

the Shawnee 
Said, as they journeyed along — "On the western 

slope of these mountains 
Dwells in his little village the Black Robe chief of 

the Mission. 
Much he teaches the people, and tells them of Mary 

and Jesus; 
Loud laugh their hearts with joy, and weep with pain 

as they hear him." 
Then, with a sudden and secret emotion, Evangeline ino 

answered — 



96 EVANGELINE 

"Let US go to the Mission, for there good tidings 
await us!" 

Thither they turned their steeds; and behind a spur 
of the mountains, 

Just as the sun went down, they heard a murmur of 
voices, 

And in a meadow green and broad, by the bank of a 
river, 
1175 Saw the tents of the Christians, the tents of the Je- 
- suit Mission. 

Under a towering oak, that stood in the midst of the 
village, 

Knelt the Black Robe chief with his children. A cru- 
cifix fastened 

High on the trunk of the tree, and overshadowed by 
grape-vines. 

Looked with its agonized face on the multitude kneel- 
ing beneath it. 
1180 This was their rural chapel. Aloft, through the in- 
tricate arches 

Of its aerial roof, arose the chant of their 
vespers. 

Mingling its notes with the soft susurrus and sighs of 
the branches. 

Silent, with heads uncovered, the travelers, nearer 
approaching. 

Knelt on the swarded floor, and joined in the even- 
ing devotions. 
1185 But when the service was done, and the benediction 
had fallen 



PART THE SECOND 97 

Forth from the hands of the priest, like seed from the 
hands of the sower, 

Slowly the reverend man advanced to the strangers, 
and bade them 

Welcome; and when they replied, he smiled with be- 
nignant expression. 

Hearing the homelike sounds of his mother tongue in 
the forest, 

And with words of kindness conducted them into 1190 
his wigwam. 

There upon mats and skins they reposed, and on 
cakes of the maize-ear 

Feasted, and slaked their thirst from the water- 
gourd of the teacher. 

Soon was their story told ; and the priest with solem- 
nity answered : 

*'Not six suns have risen and set since Gabriel, 
seated 

On this mat by my side, where now the maiden re- 1195 
poses, 

Told me this same sad tale; then arose and continued 
his journey!" 

Soft was the voice of the priest, and he spake with 
an accent of kindness; 

But on Evangeline's heart fell his words as in winter 
the snowflakes 

Fall into some lone nest from which the birds have 
departed. 

"Far to the north he has gone," continued the priest; 1200 
"but in autumn, 



98 EVANGELINE 

When the chase is done, will return again to the Mis- 
sion.'* 

Then Evangeline said, and her voice was meek and 
submissive — 

"Let me remain with thee, for my soul is sad and 
afflicted." 

So seemed it wise and well unto all; and betimes on 
the morrow, 
1205 Mounting his Mexican steed, with his Indian guides 
and companions, 

Homeward Basil returned, and Evangeline stayed at 
the Mission. 

Slowly, slowly, slowly the days succeeded each other — " 
Days and weeks and months; and the fields of maize 

that were springing 
Green from the ground when a stranger she came, 

now waving above her, 
1210 Lifted their slender shafts, with leaves interlacing 

and forming 
Cloisters for mendicant crows and granaries pillaged 

by squirrels. 
Then in the golden weather the maize was husked, 

and the maidens 
Blushed at each blood-red ear, for that betokened a 

lover. 
But at the crooked laughed, and called it a thief in 

the corn-field. 
1215 Even the blood-red ear to Evangeline brought not 

her lover. 



PART THE SECOND 99 

"Patience!" the priest would say; ''have faith, and 

thy prayer will be answered ! 
Look at this vigorous plant that lifts its head from 

the meadow, 
See how its leaves all point to the north, as true as 

the magnet; 
It is the compass-flower, that the finger of God has 

suspended 
Here in the houseless wild, to direct the traveler's 1220 

journey 
Over the sea-like, pathless, limitless waste of the 

desert. 
Such in the soul of man is faith. The blossoms of 

passion. 
Gay and luxuriant flowers, are brighter and fuller of . 

fragrance. 
But they beguile us, and lead us astray, and their 

odor is deadly. 
Only this humble plant can guide us here, and here- 122s 

after 
Crown us with asphodel flowers, that are wet with 

the dews of nepenthe." 

So came the autumn, and passed, and the winter — 

yet Gabriel came not; 
Blossomed the opening spring, and the notes of the 

robin and bluebird 
Sounded sweet upon wold and in wood, yet Gabriel 

came not. 



100 ' EVANGELINE 

1230 But on the breath of the summer winds a rumor 
was wafted 

Sweeter than song of bird, or hue or odor of blossom. 

Far to the north and east, it said, in the Michigan 
forests, 

Gabriel had his lodge by the banks of the Saginaw 
river. 

And, with returning guides, that sought the lakes of 
St. Lawrence, 
1235 Saying a sad farewell, Evangeline went from the Mis- 
sion. 

When over weary ways, by long and perilous mar- 
ches, 

She had attained at length the depths of the Michi- 
gan forests. 

Found she the hunter's lodge deserted and fallen to 
ruin! 

Thus did the long sad years glide on, and in seasons 
and places 
1240 Divers and distant far was seen the wandering 
maiden; 

Now in the tents of grace of the meek Moravian Mis- 
sions, 

Now in the noisy camps and the battle-fields of the 
army, 

Now in secluded hamlets, in towns and populous 
cities, 

Like a phantom she came, and passed away unre- 
memberedi 



PART THE SECOND 101 

Fair was she and young, when in hope began the long 124s 

journey; 
Faded was she and old, when in disappointment it 

ended. 
Each succeeding year stole something away from her 

beauty, 
Leaving behind it, broader and deeper, the gloom 

and the shadow. 
Then there appeared and spread faint streaks of 

gray o'er her forehead, 
Dawn of another life, that broke o'er her earthly 125^ 

horizon. 
As in the eastern sky the first faint streaks of the 

morning. 



In that delightful land which is washed by the Dela- 
ware's waters, 
Guarding in sylvan shades the name of Penn the 

apostle. 
Stands on the banks of its beautiful stream the city 

he founded. 
There all the air is balm, and the peach is the emblem 125s 

of beauty. 
And the streets still re-echo the names of the trees of 

the forest. 
As if they fain would appease the Dryads whose 

haunts they molested. 
There from the troubled sea had Evangeline landed, 

an exile, 



102 EVANGELINE 

Finding among the children of Penn a home and a 
country. 
1260 There old Rene Leblanc had died; and when he de- 
parted, 

Saw at his side only one of all his hundred descend- 
ants. 

Something at least there was in the friendly streets 
of the city, 

Something that spake to her heart, and made her no 
longer a stranger: 

And her ear was pleased with the Thee and Thou of 
the Quakers, 
1265 For it recalled the past, the old Acadian 
country. 

Where all men were equal, and all were brothers and 
sisters. 

So, when the fruitless search, the disappointed en- 
deavor. 

Ended, to recommence no more upon earth, uncom- 
plaining, 

Thither, as leaves to the light, were turned her 
thoughts and her footsteps. 
1270 As from a mountain's top the rainy mists of the 
morning 

Roll away, and far we behold the landscape below 
us, 

Sun-illumined, with shining rivers and cities and 
hamlets, 
. So fell the mists from her mind, and she saw the 
world far below her, 



PART THE SECOND , 103 

Dark no longer, but all illumined with love; and the 

pathway 
Which she had climbed so far, lying smooth and fair 1275 

in the distance. 
Gabriel was not forgotten. Within her heart was 

his image. 
Clothed in the beauty of love and youth, as last she 

beheld him, 
Only more beautiful made by his deathlike silence 

and absence. 
Into her thoughts of him time entered not, for it was 

not. 
Over him years had no power; he had not changed, 1280 

but transfigured ; 
He had become to her heart as one who is dead, and 

not absent; 
Patience and abnegation of self, and devotion to 

others. 
This was the lesson a life of trial and sorrow had 

taught her. 
So was her love diffused, but, like to some odorous 

spices. 
Suffered no waste nor loss, though filling the air with i28S 

aroma. 
Other hope had she none, nor wish in life, but to 

follow 
Meekly, with reverent steps, the sacred feet of her 

Saviour. 
Thus many years she lived as a Sister of Mercy; fre- 
quenting 



104 EVANGELINE 

Lonely and wretched roofs in the crowded lanes of 

the city, 
1290 Where distress and want concealed themselves from 

the sunlight, 
Where disease and sorrow in garrets languished ne- 
glected. 
Night after night, when the world was asleep, as the 

watchman repeated 
Loud, through the gusty streets, that all was well in 

the city. 
High at some lonely window he saw the light of her 

taper. 
1295 Day after day, in the gray of the dawn, as slow 

through the suburbs 
Plodded the German farmer, with flowers and fruits 

for the market. 
Met he that meek, pale face, returning home from 

its watchings. 

Then it came to pass that a pestilence fell on the 

city. 
Presaged by wondrous signs, and mostly by flocks of 

wild pigeons, 
1300 Darkening the sun in their flight, with naught in 

their craws but an acorn. 
And, as the tides of the sea arise in the month of 

September, 
Flooding some silver stream, till it spreads to a lake 

in a meadow, 



PART THE SECOND 105 

So death flooded life, and o'erflowing its natural 
margin, 

Spread to a brackish lake, the silver stream of exist- 
ence. 

Wealth had no power to bribe, nor beauty to charm, i3os 
the oppressor; 

But all perished alike beneath the scourge of his 
anger; — 

Only, alas! the poor, who had neither friends nor 
attendants. 

Crept away to die in the almshouse, home of the 
homeless; 

Then in the suburbs it stood, in the midst of 
meadows and woodlands; — 

Now the city surrounds it; but still with its gateway uio 
and wicket 

Meek, in the midst of splendor, its humble walls 
seem to echo 

Softly the words of the Lord : — '' The poor ye always 
have with you." 

Thither, by night and by day, came the Sister of 
Mercy. The dying 

Looked up into her face, and thought, indeed, to be- 
hold there 

Gleams of celestial light encircle her forehead with 1315 
splendor, 

Such as the artist paints o'er the brows of saints and 
apostles. 

Or such as hangs by night o'er a city seen at a dis- 
tance. 



106 EVANGELINE 

Unto their eyes it seemed the lamps of the city celes- 
tial, 

Into whose shining gates ere long their spirits would 
enter. 

1320 Thus, on a Sabbath morn, through the streets, de- 
serted and silent, 

Wending her quiet way, she entered the door of the 
almshouse. 

Sweet on the summer air was the odor of flowers in 
the garden; 

And she paused on her way to gather the fairest 
among them, 

That the dying once more might rejoice in their fra- 
grance and beauty. 
1325 Then, as she mounted the stairs to the corridors, 
cooled by the east wind. 

Distant and soft on her ear fell the chimes from the 
belfry of Christ Church, 

While, intermingled with these, across the meadows 
were wafted 

Sounds of psalms, that were sung by the Swedes in 
their church at Wicaco. 

Soft as descending wings fell the calm of the hour on 
her spirit; 
1330 Something within her said, ''At length thy trials 
are ended;" 

And, with a light in her looks, she entered the cham- 
bers of sickness, 



PART THE SECOND 107 

Noiselessly moved about the assiduous, careful at- 
tendants, 

Moistening the feverish lip, and the aching brow, 
and in silence 

Closing the sightless eyes of the dead, and concealing 
their faces. 

Where on their pallets they lay, like drifts of snow by 1335 
the roadside. 

Many a languid head, upraised as Evangeline 
entered, 

Turned on its pillow of pain to gaze while she passed, 
for her presence 

Fell on their hearts like a ray of the sun on the walls 
of a prison. 

And, as she looked around, she saw how Death, the 
consoler, 

Laying his hand upon many a heart had healed it i34o 
forever. 

Many familiar forms had disappeared in the night- 
time; 

Vacant their places were, or filled already by stran- 
^ _gers. 

Suddenly, as if arrested by fear or a feeling of won- 
der. 

Still she stood, with her colorless lips apart, while a 

shudder 
Ran through her frame, and, forgotten, the flowerets i34S 

dropped from her fingers, 
And from her eyes and cheeks the light and bloom of 
the morning. 



108 EVANGELINE 

Then there escaped from her lips a cry of such terri- 
ble anguish, 
That the dying heard it, and started up from their 

pillows. 
On the pallet before her was stretched the form of an 

old man. 
1350 Long, and thin, and gray were the locks that shaded 

his temples; 
But, as he lay in the morning light, his face for a 

moment 
Seemed to assume once more the forms of its earlier 

manhood; 
So are wont to be changed the faces of those who are 

dying. 
Hot and red on his lips still burned the flush of the 

fever, 
1355 As if life, like the Hebrew, with blood had besprink- 
led its portals. 
That the Angel of Death might see the sign, and 

pass over, 
Motionless, senseless, dying, he lay, and his spirit 

exhausted 
Seemed to be sinking dowii through infinite depths in 

the darkness, 
Darkness of slumber and death, forever sinking and 

sinking. 
1360 Then through those realms of shade, in multiplied 

reverberations, 
Heard he that cry of pain, and through the hush that 

succeeded 



PART THE SECOND 109 

Whispered a gentle voice, in accents tender and saint- 
like, 
"Gabriel! O my beloved!" and died away into 

silence. 
Then he beheld, in a dream, once more the home of 

his childhood; 
Green Acadian meadows, with sylvan rivers among i365 

them, 
Village, and mountain, and woodlands; and, walk- 
ing under their shadow, 
As in the days of her youth, Evangeline rose in his 

vision. 
Tears came into his eyes; and as slowly he lifted his 

eyelids, 
Vanished the vision away, but Evangeline knelt by 

his bedside. 
Vainly he strove to whisper her name, for the accents 1^70 

unuttered 
Died on his lips, and their motion revealed what his 

tongue would have spoken. 
Vainly he strove to rise; and Evangeline, kneeling 

beside him. 
Kissed his dying lips, and laid his head on her 

bosom. 
Sweet was the light of his eyes; but it suddenly sank 

into darkness, 
As when a lamp is blown out by a gust of wind at a 1375 

casement. 
All was ended now, the hope, and the fear, and the 

sorrow, 



110 EVANGELINE 

All the aching of heart, the restless, unsatisfied long- 
ing, 

All the dull, deep pain, and constant anguish of pa- 
tience ! 

And, as she pressed once more the lifeless head to her 
bosom, 
1380 Meekly she bowed her own, and murmured, ''Father 
I thank thee!" 

Still stands the forest primeval; but far away from 
its shadow. 

Side by side, in their nameless graves, the lovers are 
sleeping. 

Under the humble walls of the little Catholic church- 
yard. 

In the heart of the city, they lie, unknown and un- 
noticed ; 
1385 Daily the tides of life go ebbing and flowing beside 
them. 

Thousands of throbbing hearts, where theirs are at 
rest and forever. 

Thousands of aching brains, where theirs no longer 
are busy. 

Thousands of toiling hands, where theirs have ceased 
from their labors, 

Thousands of weary feet, where theirs have com- 
pleted their journey! 
1390 Still stands the forest primeval; but under the shade 
of its branches 



PART THE SECOND 111 

Dwells another race, with other customs and lan- 
guage. 

Only along the shore of the mournful and misty At- 
lantic 

Linger a few Acadian peasants, whose fathers from 
exile 

Wandered back to their native land to die in its 
bosom; 

In the fisherman's cot the wheel and the loom are I39s 
still busy; 

Maidens still wear their Norman caps and their kir- 
ties of homespun. 

And by the evening fire repeat Evangehne's story, 

While from its rocky caverns the deep-voiced, neigh- 
boring ocean 

Speaks, and in accents disconsolate answers the wail 
of the forest. 



<ir 



ANALYSIS OF EVANGELINE 

PART I 

Introduction 

LINES 

(a) The primeval forest 1-8 

(6) Traditions of Grand Pre 9-15 

(c) The poet introduces his theme 16-19 

I. The Acadian Land 

(a) The description of Grand Pre 20-57 

(b) Benedict Bellefontaine 58-64 

(c) Evangeline • • • • 65-81 

(d) Evangeline's home 82-102 

(e) Evangeline's suitors 103-118 

(J) The childhood of Evangeline and Gabriel 119-139 

(g) Their manhood and womanhood 140-147 

II. Autumn in Acadia 

(a) The advent of Autumn 148-158 

(6) The Summer of All-Saints 15^170 

(c) The flocks and herds 171-198 

(d) Evangehne and her father at home 199-217 

(e) The visit of Basil and Gabriel 218-267 

in. Incidents at the Interview Between Basil and the 

Notary 

(o) Ren6 Leblanc, the notary public 268-287 

(6) The argument 288-300 

(c) The notary's story and its effect 301-329 

113 



114 EVANGELINE 

LINES 

{d) Evangeline's betrothal 330-344 

(e) The game of checkers 345-352 

(/) The departure of the guests 353-357 

{g) Evangeline retires 358-381 

IV. The Assembling op the People 
{a) 
ih) 

(c) (Re-read carefully lines 382-523, and 

(d) arrange the sub-topics under these 

(e) headings after the maimer indicated 
(J) ^ above.) 

(9) 

V. Scenes at the Embabkation 

(a) The gathering on the shore . 524-552 

(b) Evangeline comforts Gabriel and her father 553-567 

(c) The night camp of the exiles 568-612 

(d) The burning of Grand Pr6 613-635 

(e) The death and burial of Benedict Belief ontaine 636-660 

(J) The departure of the exiles 661-665 

PART II 

I. Evangeline's Search for Gabriel Begun 

(a) 

(6) (Re-read lines 666-740, and arrange 

(c) the sub-topics so that they may be as 

(d) brief and full of meaning as possible.) 
(e) 



II. Evangeline and the Exiles on the Mississippi 

(a) The Acadian boatmen 741-750 

(6) The journey and its forebodings 751-784 



ANALYSIS OF EVANGELINE 115 

LINES 

(c) Evangeline's vision, the bugle 785-799 

(d) While Evangeline slept 800-841 

(e) Evangeline's dream 842-862 

(/) Continuation of the journey 863-887 

III. Reunion at the Home of Basil the Herdsman 

(Re-read lines 888-1077 and arrange the sub-topics. Use your 
owTi judgment as to the number and their selection. Should any- 
thing be added to the main topic?) 

IV. The Search Continued 

(a) The western land 1078-1105 

(6) Old camp-fires 1106-1115 

(c) The interview with the Shawnee woman 1116-1164 

(d) The visit to the mission 1165-1206 

(e) The lesson of "faith" 1207-1226 

(f) Evangeline's visit to the Michigan frontier 1227-1238 

(g) Long years of search for Gabriel 1239-1251 



(1) What is topic V? 

(2) Re-read lines 1252-1399 and arrange the sub-topics as in 
III above.) 



1. Review again the entire poem with a copy of the complete 
outline in hand, and make any necessary revisions of the topics in 
the above analysis. 

2. FamiUarize yourself with the outline so that you may be able 
to tell the class the eomplete story of Evangeline. 



116 EVANGELINE 

EXERCISES 

Assignment 1 
Oral Recitation 

{a) Repeat from memory those lines of the introduction which 
give the theme of the poem. 

(6) What other poem can you name which has similar introduc- 
tory hnes? 

(c) Read the introduction and omit these lines. How does the 
poem lose interest for you? 

{d) How ^should you make known in the introductory paragraph 
the meaning you are to set forth in your own composition? 

(e) Why are ^^ murmuring fines ^^ compared to ^'Druids''? Ask 
your teacher to explain this figure of speech to you. 

(J) Vocabulary. — ^Look up in the dictionary and report to the 
class the meaning of the following words: primeval (1); harpers, 
hoar (4); thatch-roofed (9); waste (12); tradition (15). 

Assignment 2 
Oral Composition 

(a) Find out a few historical and geographical facts about the 
Acadian Land and make a report to the class. Study pages 10-11, 
also the map on 16. Read accounts in the encyclopedia. 

(6) Read hnes 20-31. What picture is brought before your mind? 
Name any cities or villages of to-day that are similarly situated. 

(c) Continue your reading as far as line 51. What and how many 
additions have you to make to your picture? 

{d) If you were to draw a picture of Grand Pre as it seems to you, 
how would Longfellow's description be of assistance to you? 

(e) Look at some picture on the walls of your school-room. If 
you were to write a description of it, what general idea would you 
try to express before taking up the details? 

(/) Vocabulary. — Look up in the dictionary or elsewhere and 
report to the olass the meaning of the following words: incMsani (24); 



EXERCISES 117 

turbulent (25); Blomidon (29); dormer-windows (35); kirtles (39); 
reverend (45). 

Assignment 3 

TFnffew Compositions 

(a) Write in one paragraph of about 75 words a description of 
the village of Grand Pre. 

(6) In two paragraphs of about 75 words each, describe Evange- 
line's home. First select your topic sentences. 

(c) Write in two paragraphs, containing at least 150 words, an 
account of Evangeline's suitors. Let paragraph (1) give a general 
idea of her suitors, and (2) an account of her particular suitor Ga- 
briel. 

(d) In one paragraph of about 100 words describe the childhood 
of Evangeline and Gabriel. 

* 

Suggestions 

In this and in all of the following exercises, after finishing your 
writing, spend about five minutes in looking over what you have 
written. (1) Correct all misspelled words. (2) Insert omitted words 
and strike out all unnecessary words, phrases, clauses, and sentences, 
rewriting if necessary. (3) See to it that every sentence is so written 
that it cannot be misunderstood. 

Assignment 4 
Oral Compositions 

(a) Tell the class in three or four carefully thought out sentences 
why the author describes with so much care Evangeline's home and 
its surroundings. 

(6) Similarly tell why he gives such a vivid picture of autimin in 
Grand Pre. 

(c) Tell the class all that you have learned about Evangehne from 
reading the first two chapters. Why is your interest in her increas- 



118 EVANGELINE 

ing? What resemblance do the scenes of country life pictured here 
bear to those of to-day? 

{d) Vocabulary. — Look up in the dictionary the meaning of 
the following words and report to the class: Jacob (153); stragglers 
(183); regent (184); cadence (19S) ; fantastic (202); hob-nailed (220); 
settle (223); ballad (231); mandate (240). 

Written Compositions 

(a) Write two paragraphs of about 100 words each giving a de- 
scription of Autumn in Acadia. Topics: (1) How all nature appeared. 
(2) How the flocks and herds behaved. 

(b) Imagine that you have been paying a visit to the home of 
Evangeline, as described in lines 199-217. Write a letter of about 
150 words to your friend describing what you saw there. Choose 
topics as in (a), and see that your letter has the proper heading, salu- 
tation, and conclusion. 

(c) Let Gabriel tell of his visit to Evangeline (lines 218-267) and 
incidentally relate the conversation that took place between his 
father and Benedict Bellefontaine. 

Suggestions 

In writing a friendly letter, it is usually considered more cour- 
teous not to begin by telling about yourself. Let your first para- 
graph refer to the last letter received from your friend, or to a de- 
lightful visit. Always write to please your correspondent rather 
than yourself. 

Assignment 6 

Oral Recitation 

(a) What new character do we now meet (line 268)? This is the 
author's best character sketch. Notice how briefly yet precisely 
it is done. General idea: (1) Bent, not broken, by age. Particular 
ideas: (1) Shocks of yellow hair, (2) high forehead, (3) spectacles 
astride his nose, (4) wise in looks, (5) ripe in wisdom, (6) patient, 



EXERCISES 119 

simple, and childlike, (7) loved by all. You may draw a picture 
of him as he appears to you and bring it to the class. 

(6) Does the notary's story prove his point that "finally justice 
triumphs"? Why did not this story convince Basil? 

(c) Be prepared to report to the class the similes and metaphors 
found in this section. 

(d) Vocabulary. — Look up the meaning of the following words 
and report to the class: supernal (272); warier (277); lore (287); 
demeanor (292); Port Royal (303); bolts (321); magpie (324); con- 
gealed (328); tankard (331); draught-hoard (344). 

Assignment 7 
Written Composition 

(a) Do you know of any one who bears a resemblance to the notary 
public as you see him? If so, write a paragraph to show wherein 
the two personages differ. 

(6) Write in your own language the notary's story. (1) Use the 
third person and past tense. (2) Make a topical outhne before you 
begin. In all of your writing never neglect to do this. 

(c) Let EvangeHne tell the complete story of her betrothal to 
Gabriel. (1) Be sure to employ the proper person and number of 
the pronoun. (2) Arrange the proper outline, as in (6). 

Suggestions 

Unless otherwise directed, in reproducing the thought contained 
in what some one else has written, a safe rule to follow is to use the 
past tense. By so doing you will not fall into the common error 
of shifting in a heedless manner from one tense to the other. 

Assignment 8 
Oral Composition 

(o) Tell the class in what respects you think life in Acadia differed 
from that of to-day, 

(6) Tell the class why hospitality was greater under Benedict's 
joof , There are several reasons, 



120 EVANGELINE 

(c) Explain in detail what is meant by (1) a betrothal contract, 
(2) a betrothal feast. 

(d) What change of feeling is brought about by Chapter IV of the 
poem? Contrast the two scenes which bring about this change. 

(e) How does this change of f eehng help to sustain our interest in 
the poem? 

(J) What did the mandate bid these people forfeit to the crown? 
With what words may you describe their feelings? 

{g) Contrast the impassioned utterances of Basil with the cool 
and considerate remarks of Father Felician. 

{h) Recite from memory lines 467-481. 

{i) Vocabulary. — Look up and report to the class the meaning 
of the following words: hamlets (387); blithe (388); jocund (389); 
sonorous (420); dissonant (426); imprecations (451); spar (454); 
allegiance (456); mien (462); tocsin (466); Prince of Peace (472); 
contrition (480); Elijah (486); Sinai (507). 

Assignment 9 
Written Composition 

(a) Write a paragraph of about 100 words describing the social 
life of the Acadians. 

(6) Imagine yourself a witness to what took place at the reading 
of the mandate. Write up these occurrences in the form of a news 
story for the daily paper. Make as many paragraphs as you think 
are needed. 

(c) Write a composition of two paragraphs contrasting the de- 
portation of the Acadians with that of the Belgians in the world war. 

Siiggestions 

A composition is made up of units called paragraphs — groups of 
sentences which are closely, related in thought, and which center 
around one idea called a topic. See to it, therefore, that every para- 
graph you construct contains only such sentences as have to do 
with its topic. 



EXERCISES 121 

Assignment 10 

Oral Recitation 

(a) How long were the Acadians at the church? 
(6) What was their attitude on leaving the church for the sea- 
shore? Was this natural? 

(c) Discuss the fortitude of Evangeline, of Gabriel, of Benedict, 
of Basil, of Father Felician, during these terrible hours. 

(d) Arrange the characters of this poem according to their relative 
importance, writing the full name of each. 

(e) How have your feehngs changed since you read the first pages 
of the poem? 

(/) Vocabulary. — Look up and report the meaning of the follow- 
ing words: refluent (575); waifs (577) ; leaguer (579) ; nethermost (582); 
wan (600); unperturbed (611); gleeds (621); illumined (648); dirges 
(660). 

Assignment 11 

Written Composition 

(a) Select a paragraph topic, and write a twenty-minute theme 
on one of the following topics: 

1. Evangeline, the ''ministering angel." 

2. The night camp of the exiles. 

3. The burning of Grand Pre. 

4. The death and burial of Benedict Bellefontaine, 

5. The departure of the exiles. 

Suggestions 
We have talked about oral and written compositions, and we 
have seen that each has a definite purpose. The manner in which 
we use language gives us another classification of discourse; for 
with it we can tell a story, describe an object, explain a problem, 
or argue a question. Thus we have narration, description, exposition, 
and argumentation. In our compositions based upon Evangeline we 
use principally description and narration. 



122 EVANGELINE 

Assignment 12 

Oral Recitation 

(o) Why does the author allow many years to elapse before in- 
troducing us to the second part of his theme? 

(6) Name any book you have read in which there is a similar inter- 
val of time. Tell the story to the class briefly. 

(c) What is suggested as to the probable success of Evangeline's 
mission by the comparison in lines 689-692? 

{d) Indicate by hnes which portions of Part I. belong to descrip- 
tion and which to narration. 

(e) Bring to the class a list of proverbial passages chosen from the 
first five pages of Part II. 

(/) What new character is introduced here? Why have we an 
interest in him? 

(gr) Vocabulary. — liook up and report the meaning of the follow- 
ing words : gods (668) ; asunder (670) ; inarticulate (669) ; tedious (712) ; 
muse (733) ; deyioMs (734); sylvan (738). 

Assignment 13 
Written Composition 

(a) Write a composition two paragraphs in length teUing of the 
wanderings of the Acadian exiles. 

(6) Write a paragraph stating how Evangehne came to know 
Baptiste Leblanc. 

(c) Write another paragraph describing how in Part II Longfellow 
arouses new interest in his poem. 

Suggestions 

It will be helpful to you if, as you write the paragraphs in this 
lesson, you will try to discriminate the kind of discourse you are 
composing, whether description, or narration, or exposition; then 
you will be able better to adapt your style of writing to the sense, 



EXERCISES 123 

Study carefully all the allusions in Evangeline, for they will help 
you not only in understanding the poem, but also in gaining an 
appreciation of it. 

Assignment 14 
Oral Composition 

(a) Explain to the class how the Acadians, who were so widely 
scattered, assembled to take the boat down the Mississippi. 
(6) Picture to the class the scene in lines 752-762. 

(c) Explain to the class what purpose the author serves in bring- 
ing in this incident. 

(d) Explain to the class what must have been the feelings of the 
boatmen in the scene in lines 790-799. 

(e) Contrast the scene in (d) with that in lines 864-887. What 
change of feeling is effected here? 

(/) Poetry has been defined as the embodiment of passionate emo- 
tion in metrical, imaginative language. Do the scenes (d) and (e) 
bear out this definition? 

(g) Vocabulary. — Look up and report to the class the meaning 
of the following words: cumbroics (744); kith and kin (749); turbulent 
(753); chutes (755); maze (767); tenebrous (769); peradventure (791); 
myriads, undulations (808); Wachita (816); cope (819); trumpet- 
flower (820); pendulous (822); plaintive (877). 

Assignment 15 
Written Composition 

(a) Let one of the Acadian boatmen give a description of his 
journey down the Mississsippi (150 words). 

(6) Let Evangeline relate her dream (150 words). 

(c) Write from memory the ten lines which you regard as the best 
in this section. The verses need not follow in succession. 



124 EVANGELINE 

Suggestions 

In writing themes such as (a) and (6), be careful to choose the 
proper person. Of course in (a) you should write in the first person 
plural, and in (b) in the first singular. Be careful to make what you 
write so vivid that any one can understand it. The proper arrange- 
ment of your paragraph topics will aid you much in attaining this 
quaUty of style. 

Assignment 16 

Oral Recitation 

(a) Lines 888-910, picture a scene that has been greatly admired 
for its repose and quiet. How does the author accompHsh this emo- 
tional effect? 

(6) What has kept Father Felician from giving up in despair? 

(c) Explain how Father Felician gave support and encouragement 
to EvangeUne in her search. 

(d) What changes of feeling do you find here? 

(e) VocABUiiARY. — Look up and report the following words: 
flaunted (889); sombrero (914); hilarious (968); accordant (1016); 
inundate {103Q)] garrulous (1075). 

Assignment 17 

Written Composition 

(a) Write two paragraphs, 150 words, contrasting Basil the black- 
smith with Basil the herdsman. 

(6) Write a paragraph of 100 words describing the home of Basil, 
the herdsman. 

(c) Report as for a newspaper, in about 150 words, the substance 
of Basil's speech at the reunion of the exiles. 

(d) Similarly report what took place at this reunion. 

(e) From what you have read of Michael, the fiddler, write in 150 
words a sketch of his fife. 

(f) Write at least ten memory-passages from this selection. 



. EXERCISES 125 

Siiggestions 

One great fault in writing is the use of too many words. A good 
newspaper reporter always condenses his stories to the fewest words 
possible, yet at the same time he gives a vivid news account to his 
readers. Try to do the same. 

Assignment 18 

Oral Composition 

(a) Tell the class why hnes 1078-1105 are necessary. Why could 
not the author have begun with line 1106? Explain fully. 

(6) What new character appears in this chapter? Tell the class 
how she increases our interest in the story. 

(c) Relate briefly the tale of the Mowis. What effect did the tales 
of the Shawnee woman have on Evangeline? 

(d) Tell the class of EvangeHne's wanderings as related in this 
chapter. 

(e) Vocabulary. — Report the meaning of the followings words: 
precipitate (1084); amorphas (1091); pinions (1097); unplacable 
(1098); taciturn, anchorite (1102); incantation (1144); subtile (1159); 
awarded (1184); water-gourd (1192); mendicant (1211); asphodel, ne- 
penthe (1226). 

Assignment 19 

Written Composition 

(a) Write a paragraph of 100 words showing how the western 
land of Evangeline's time differed from that of to-day. 

(6) Give an account of the interview with the Shawnee woman. 
Let Evangeline tell the story (150 words). 

(c) Describe the visit in the mission. 

Suggestions 
Do not employ too many superlatives, as "finest," "most magnif- 
icent," "grandest," but write just as you would talk. " Be natural 
in all that you do or say " is a good rule to follow in your eomposition 
work. 



126 EVANGELINE . 

No exercises have been assigned on the concluding section of the 
poem because it is beheved that an opportunity is ofifered here for 
the pupil to do original work in analysis, and also to review the lead- 
ing characters of the poem and incidentally the poem itself. 

Let the pupils gather all that the poet says of any particular char- 
acter, and make a summary of these details after the manner in- 
dicated below. Let us take Rene Leblanc: 
Lines 268-279. The general characteristics of the man. 
Lines 280-287. His folk-lore stories. 

Lines 292-296. His answer to Basil carries with it no suspicion. 
Lines 301-325. He relates the story about Justice to show that right 

will prevail. 
Lines 333-335. Show us his manner. 

Lines 711-712. A mention is made of his son, Baptiste Leblanc. 
Lines 1260-1261. Old Rene Leblanc dies in Philadelphia. 

These are the facts; now arrange them in a proper outline, and 
write the character sketch. 

• Unlike the other themes, these should be written outside of the 
class, and should be more detailed. A sunmiary as indicated above 
should be required, because it gives practice in research, and culti- 
vates a habit of accuracy in literary work. 



NOTES 

Page 17, 3. Druids of eld. The Druids were the priests of ancient 
Britain. They were the supreme power in the nation, made laws, 
imposed taxes, and executed punishments. They worshipped in oak 
groves and regarded the oak with great veneration. Mistletoe found 
growing on an oak tree was cut, at Christmas time, by the priests 
with golden knives as an act of ceremony. (See page 77, line 890.) 

Page 18, 20. Acadian. The country of Nova Scotia was called 
Acadia during the time when it was held by the French. The name, 
however, included New Brunswick and parts of Maine. 

Page 19, 34. Normandy. The first Acadians were natives of 
Normandy and Burgundy in France. 

Page 20, 49. Angelus. A prayer or devotion said morning, noon, 
and night. Longfellow means here the bell which is rung to announce 
the time of prayer. 

Page 23, 93. Wains. Wagons. 

94. Seraglio. The poet uses the word seraglio, which means the 
palace where the wives of Turkish noblemen are shut up, to give a 
vivid picture of the lordly turkey among the hens. 

Page 26, 144. Sunshine of Saint Eulalie. A martyred saint of 
Barcelona, Spain. St. Eulalie's Day is the 12th of February. Sun- 
shine at that time of the year was considered especially favorable to 
orchards. 

Page 27, 149. Scorpion. One of the constellations on the imag- 
inary belt in the heavens (the zodiac), in the middle of which is the 
path of the sun. The sun seems to enter Scorpion about October 23d. 

159. Summer of All-Saints. Our "Indian summer," in the early 
part of October. 

Page 28, 170. Plane-tree the Persian adorned with mantles and 
jewels. Herodotus says that the Persian ruler Xerxes in his expedi- 
tion against Greece found a plane-tree so beautiful that he presented 

127 



128 NOTES 

it with golden ornaments, and put it under the care of one of his 
body-guard. 

Page 33, 238. Gaspereau (gas pe roO- A river flowing into the 
basia of Minas near Grand-Pre. 

239. "What their design may be is unknown. It was determined 
to keep the secret of their coming transportation from the Acadians 
until the last minute, for fear they would neglect or injure the har- 
vest. The terms of the mandate were as follows: "We order and 
strictly enjoin all the inhabitants, both old men and young men, as 
well as all lads of ten years of age, to attend at the church at Grand- 
Pr4, the fifth instant, at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, that we may 
impart tathem what we are ordered to communicate to them." 

249. Beau Sejour (bo so zhoor'). A French fort situated between 
New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, built by the French to annoy the 
English settlers in Nova Scotia. The existence of this fort blocked 
land communication between the New England provinces and Nova 
Scotia. When the fort was captured by the English, three hundred 
Acadians were said to have been found among the garrison. 

Port Royal. One of the first colonies founded (1604) by the 
French in Nova Scotia. In 1713 the English, having acquired Nova 
Scotia by treaty, changed the name of the town to Annapolis, in 
honor of Queen Anne. One of the charges made against the Cana- 
dians was that they treacherously attacked the town in cooperation 
with the French. 

Page 34, 260. The merry lads . . . well. As soon as a young 
Acadian arrived at the proper age for marriage, the community built 
him a house and supplied him with all the necessaries of life. There 
he received the partner he had chosen, who brought her portion in 
flocks. 

263. Rene Leblanc (RenaleBlaiicO. That the notary was ac- 
tually named Ren6 Leblanc will be seen from this sentence in the 
petition of the Acadians to the king: "Rene Leblanc (our public 
notary) was taken prisoner by the Indians when actually traveling in 
your Majesty's service, his house pillaged, and himself carried to the 
French fort, from whence he did not recover his liberty, but with 
great difficulty, after four years' captivity." 



NOTES 129 

Page 36, 280. Loup-garou. According to an old superstition, a 
loup-garou, or were wolf, was a human being turned into a wolf 
while still retaining human intelligence. 

281. Goblin (kobold). An industrious, kindly spirit, in old fairy 
tales, who was especially fond of taking care of horses, and very 
unwilling to be recognized or thanked. 

282. Letiche (Le tesh'). According to the French peasants' 
stories, the soul of a child who has died unchristened appears at night 
in the form of a small animal as white as milk. 

Page 37, 307. Scales. Justice is represented in art as holding a 
pair of scales, to show that every fact for and against an accused per- 
son will be carefully weighed. The sword in the other hand shows 
that the punishment for offenses will be keen and swift. 

Page 42, 381. Hagar. In the 'Old Testament story, Sarah, 
Abraham's wife, drove Hagar, the Egyptian handmaid, and her son 
Ishmael away into the desert. 

Page 46, 432. You are convened this day, etc. Thfese are almost 
the exact words of part of the speech of General Winslow, the British 
commanding officer, to the Acadians, convened (assembled) in the 
church of Grand-Pre. 

442. Solstice. The point at which the sun is farthest from the 
equator. The summer solstice begins June 21st; the winter, Dec. 
21st. 

Page 47, 456. We never have sworn them allegiance. At first 
when Acadia passed into the hands of the English, the Acadians 
were not forced to take the oath of allegiance to the English crown. 
Afterwards an oath was demanded, which, however, did not bind 
them to serve against their fellow countrymen. One of the reasons 
for the exile of the Acadians was that they refused to take the oath 
without this saving clause. 

Page 49, 484. Ave Maria. A Latin prayer to the Virgin. 

Page 58, 605. Benedicite. A Latin blessing or benediction. 

615. Titan-like stretches its hundred hands. In the Greek legend, 
the Titans were huge giants, armed with rocks and trees, who made 
war on the gods on Olympus. One of the Titans, Briareus, is said to 
'have had a hundred arms and fifty heads. 



130 NOTES 

Page 59, 631. Nebraska. A river, rising in the Rocky Moun- 
tains and flowing through Wyoming and Nebraska. 

Page 61, 657. Without bell or book. Without the rites of the 
church. 

Page 62, 670. Far asunder, on separate coasts. Seven thousand 
of the inhabitants of Acadia were dispersed among the British colo- 
nies. One thousand arrived in Massachusetts Bay. Large numbers 
were sent to the southern colony of Georgia, from whence they en- 
deavored to return, and by a long and dangerous coasting voyage 
had even reached New York or Boston, when they were compelled 
to give up their plans. 

674. Savannas. Extensive plains of grass, affording pasturage in 
the rainy seasons. 

675. Father of Waters. The Mississippi. 

Page 64, 705. Coureurs-des-Bois (koo'rerda bwa). Literally, 
runners of the woods. This name was given by the French and 
Canadians to the hardy hunters and traders who traveled through 
the yet uncleared forests of colonial times. 

Page 65, 707. Voyageur (vwa ya zher'). The voyageurs were 
generally French-Canadians who were employed by the Northwest 
and Hudson Bay Companies in transporting men and supplies be- 
tween their various stations. This was done entirely by birch-bark 
canoes. 

713. Thou art too fair to be left to braid St Catherine's tresses. 
To live unmarried. 

Page 67, 750. Acadian coast. The coast at the mouth of the 
Mississippi. Opelousas is the old name for a T)art of Louisiana. 

764. Golden Coast. The southern part of Louisiana, above 
Baton Rouge. 

Page 69, 766. Plaquemine (plak menO. A town on the west 
bank of the Mississippi. A bayou or creek runs westward from the 
Mississippi into the Atchafalaya River (1. 807). During the dry 
season, the streams of the Mississippi fall, and the Atchafalaya be- 
comes a series of lakes instead of a river. 

Page 70, 782. Mimosa. A plant often called the sensitive plant. 
At the slightest touch, the leaves will curl up tightly. 



NOTES 131 

Page 76, 878. Bacchantes (bakan' tes). Priestesses of Bacchus, 
who, by wine and excitement, worked themselves into a frenzy at 
the festivals of the god. 

Page 77, 890. Druids cut down with golden hatchets at Yuletide. 
See the note on line 3, page 17. 

Page 81, 952. Adayes (a da' yes). A town in northern Texas. 

961. Olympus. A mountain in Greece, supposed to be the home 
of the gods. 

Page 82, 970. Ci-devant (sedevahn'). The French for /ormer. 

Page 83, 984. Natchitoches (nach' e tosh). A town in Louisiana, 
on the Red River. 

Page 86, 1033. Carthusian. The Carthusians are an order of 
monks. 

Page 87, 1044. Upharsin. The Book of Daniel in the Old Testa- 
ment describes how, while Belshazzar the king was feasting and 
drinking from the golden vessels taken from the temple in Jerusalem, 
a hand appeared on the wall and wrote the words, "Mene, Mene, 
Tekel, Upharsin," which, as interpreted by Daniel, meant "destruc- 
tion to Belshazzar." 

Page 90, 1082-85. Evangeline journeys to the far west. The 
Oregon is the Columbia river. The Owyhee and Walleway are 
tributaries of the Oregon. The Wind-river Mountains are part of the 
Rocky Mountains. Fontaine-qui-bout (f on' tan ke boo) is a spring 
in Colorado. 

1095. IshmaePs children. The ancient prophecy concerning the 
Ishmaelites, or the sons of Ishmael, was, ''His hand will be against 
every man and every man's hand against him." Here the poet uses 
the name to mean the warlike tribes of Indians on the western 
plains. 

Page 92, 1114. Fata Morgana. A mirage, or a misleading effect 
which makes travelers on deserts, plains, or ocean see distant ob- 
jects as if they were very near. The mirage is called Fata Morgana 
because it was once supposed to be the work of the Fairy (fata) 
Morgana. 

Page 93, 1139. Mowis. The story is as follows: A beautiful 
Indian maiden had by her sorcery cast an Indian brave into a wasting 



132 NOTES ( 

sickness. The "Manito" (good spirit) of the warrior promised to 
avenge him. By his orders, the Indian made a suit of clothes from 
old rags, and richly adorned them with jewels. He then formed a 
human figure out of dried bones and refuse, bound together with 
snow. The Manito breathed life into this figure (Mowis) and brought 
him before the maiden. She at once fell in love with the stranger 
and married him. On the morning after the marriage-day the 
bridegroom rose early, and, taking his bows and arrows, told his 
wife that he was forced to set out on a long journey. She begged to 
be allowed to accompany him. After some attempts at dissuasion, 
he consented. They set out together, but she could not keep up 
with her liusband's steps and soon lost sight of him. The sun rose, 
and the fierce heat melted the snow that bound Mowis together; the 
dry bones began to reappear, and then the form utterly disappeared. 
When the maiden realized that she had lost her lover, she lay down 
and died. 

Page 95, 1167. Mission. The Jesuit priests were dauntless in 
their efforts to push into the wilderness and convert the Indians. 

Page 99, 1226. Asphodel. The asphodel was supposed, by the 
ancient Greeks, to cover the broad fields of the future world. Nepen- 
the was any potion that had the power of dispelling pain and care. 

Page 101, 1257. Dryads. Wood-nymphs, who made their homes 
in the trees:. When a tree was cut down, the dryad who lived there 
died. 

Page 106, 1326. Christ Church. An Episcopalian church in 
Philadelphia, where Franklin was buried. 

Page 108, 1355. Like the Hebrew. Referring to the Bible story 
of the sprinkling of the doors with the blood of the lamb during the 
last plague in Egypt. 



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